This paper will discuss the inner conflict experienced by Jane Eyre in her unique way of showing love toward Mr. Rochester in the novel Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte. It can be seen that there are three basic levels on which Jane's inner conflict takes place. These are: (1) the struggle between her self-control and her desire to express her emotions of love; (2) the struggle between the male dominance of her time and her desire to be free and equal; and (3) the struggle between her spiritual and moral values and her desire for a physical relationship with Rochester. Through the resolutions of these conflicts, Jane Eyre experiences a sense of growth by the end of the novel. Therefore, rather than being a simple love story, Jane Eyre expresses the theme of an "inner evolution of the true self, and the full nature of the free individual in relationship" (Kinkead-Weekes 85).
Jane's struggle with the forces of self-control can be traced back to the early experiences of her childhood. At the home of Mrs. Reed, the young Jane was punished by being made to sit alone in the "red-room" where Mr. Reed had died. Later, at the Lowood Institute, Jane is further subjected to harsh punishments by the cruel master Mr. Brocklehurst. Jane's only friends at Lowood are Miss Temple, the headmistress, and Helen Burns, another young girl at the institution who later dies. Jane's sense of self-control is learned from these two characters. For example, from Miss Temple, Jane learns to value the "serenity in her air, of state in her mien, of refined propriety in her language" (Bronte 104). Helen Burns, on the other hand, teaches Jane to "temper her craving of love" and to "look to herself and not to any external authority for her sense of right action" (Nestor 57). From these experiences, Jane learns the value of self-discipline as well as the value of "duty and self-control" (Moglen 117).
Because of this particular character trait, Jane Eyre ...