Jane Eyre – Governesses and Social Position

A comprehensive and professionally structured resource exploring the governess’s uncertain social position and its significance within Jane Eyre.

This resource examines how Jane’s education enables her to earn an income while leaving her dependent upon wealthier households. It considers how Brontë uses Jane’s experiences at Thornfield and Morton to explore employment, class prejudice, financial vulnerability, dignity and the gradual movement towards personal independence.

Key features:

• Clear explanation of the governess’s liminal position between the family and the servant class
• Focus on Jane’s education, advertisement for employment, salary and professional relationship with Adèle
• Exploration of the Thornfield house party, Blanche Ingram’s prejudice and Jane’s exclusion from fashionable society
• Examination of Rochester’s economic power, Jane’s resistance to becoming a possession and the importance of her inheritance
• A varied selection of activities supported by a complete answer key