Assignment 3

Chapter five begins with Jane leaving Gateshead Hall early in the morning, embarking on a long carriage ride to her new school. She arrives there late at night but doesn’t notice much as she is tired and falls asleep soon after she arrives. The next day, she is woken up before dawn and is immediately subject to long hours of sitting still through classes, overworked and underfed. Most of the teachers are cruel and unforgiving, regularly beating the children for trivial things. When Jane was still living with the Reeds, Mr. Brocklehurst, the owner of the school, came to visit and interview Jane. He was a harsh, cold man and when he spoke of the other teachers, you presumed they would be of the same demeanor. However, when Jane got to school one of the teachers stood out from the others. Miss Temple was probably the kindest teacher there. She rarely punished the students and felt terrible when doing so, even to the worst behaved students. Miss Temple is one of the first adult characters in the novel that displays any sort of affection, besides Bessie. Helen Burns, a fellow pupil at the school, is cruelly mistreated by one of the teachers on a daily basis. Jane is surprised to learn that she puts up with it without a fight. Helen tells her that she lives by a philosophy of loving her enemies and accepting her hardships. I think this is a bold belief for a child to live by and shows that she is wise beyond her years. Mr. Brocklehurst’s philosophy of education is incredibly harsh and biased, treating the children as if they were slaves. He believes in denying the body and soul of indulgences, forcing hard labor and self-deniance upon them.