In the Eye of the Beholder

Passage:  (p. 11)
"He ran headlong at me: I felt him grasp my hair and my shoulder: he had closed with a desperate thing.  I really saw in him a tyrant, a murderer.  I felt a drop or two of blood from my head trickle down my neck, and was sensible of somewhat pungent suffering: these sensations for the time predominated over fear, and I received him in a frantic sort.  I don't very well know what I did with my hands, but he called me 'Rat!  Rat!' and bellowed out aloud.  Aid was near him: Eliza and Georgiana had run for Mrs Reed, who was gone upstairs; she now came upon the scene, followed by Bessie and her maid Abbot.  We were parted: I heard the words:-
'Dear!  dear!  What a fury to fly at Master John!'
'Did ever anybody see such a picture of passion!'
Then Mrs Reed subjoined:-
'Take her away to the red-room, and lock her in there.'  Four hands were immediately laid upon me, and I was borne upstairs."


In this passage, Bronte presents Jane as an insolent ten year old who is unjustly punished for her companion's initialization of a fight.  The adults in the situation see only Jane's abuse of John, even though John was the one who was unprovoked in his hostility.  Though this seems unfair to Jane at the time, she realizes later in life that the adults acted as they saw fit.

Jane feels that she was punished for doing nothing; she was simply protecting herself, nothing more.  However, she was alone in her quest for justice. John had the upper hand; "aid was near him" (line 5), rather in between the brawlers as indiscriminate bystanders should be.  Instead, Mrs. Reed and the other adults saw only Jane and her fury.  Thus, they responded as they should in such a case- they punished Jane.  They were there only the "aid" John, both because he was greatly favored and that was simply the side they witnessed.

At the time, this infuriated Jane.  Being described as "a picture of passion" (line 9) is wholly in character for her; in whatever activity she involves herself in, Jane jumps with both feet into the matter at hand.  While at the time a horrible, nasty concept to those around her, this trait proves helpful later in life.  For instance, throwing herself into her friendship with Helen set Jane on a course for a more enriched lifestyle.  Helen taught Jane to not see the incident in such a jaded light.  Instead, by looking solely at the facts, Jane sees years later that Mrs. Reed was simply acting on what she witnessed firsthand.  Had Mrs. Reed entered the room moments before, Jane's punishment may not have been as severe and John surely would have received a slap on the hand as well.

In the end, Jane came out a better, more advanced, more gentlemanly person than John.  Years after instigating petty fights, John had not progressed much further.  He was kicked out of college, too dumb for law school, and too unmotivated to be much of anything else.  Whereas Jane went on to receive a hearty education and found meaning in her life, which is far above where the Reeds tried to tell her place in life.  This passage sets up the story for an ironic turn of events- learning that the one who was punished for the fight ended up becoming the victor in the end.