At every turn in the novel, there is omnipresence of
the supernatural making the reader abandon realism for a moment. The presence
of such elements in the novel diverts the reader’s attention from the main
theme of the novel. This element is introduced in the novel from the outset
when Jane is locked in the red room on the orders of Mrs. Reed.
“..at
this moment a light gleamed on the wall. Was it, I asked myself, a ray from the
moon penetrating some aperture in the blind? No; moonlight was still, and this
stirred; while I gazed, it glided up to the ceiling and quivered over my head.
I can now conjecture readily that this streak of light was, in all likelihood,
a gleam from a lantern, carried by someone across the lawn: but then, prepared
as my mind was for horror, shaken as my nerves were by agitation, I thought the
swift-darting beam was a herald of some coming vision from another world. My heart
beat thick, my head grew hot; a sound filled my ears, which I deemed the
rushing of wings: something seemed near me; I was oppressed, suffocated:
endurance broke …”
It is like Jane is anticipating that her uncle’s
ghost is going to show up. This causes her to scream and she faints. That is
how strong her belief is that the dead can be back to visit their loved ones
since she considers him to be her only relation. The red room has been
associated with death: red reflecting
the color of blood and it contains a miniature of her dead uncle. Even during
her presence in Thornfield, when she hears the ‘eerie laughter’ she is
expecting the presence of a ghost in the house instead of a rational
expectation that it could be one of the maids.
Apart from this, Jane also has a strong belief in
dreams. When she has unpleasant dreams, Jane considers them unlucky. When the
love of her life proposes to her in the garden, that very night the old horse
chestnut tree that is there in this garden is struck by lightning and split in
half. This is seen as symbolizing trouble that lies ahead for the couple.
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