is bertha mason black

Years of violence, insanity, and confinement in an attic destroy Bertha's looks: when she sees Bertha in the middle of the night, Jane describes Bertha as looking "savage", even going so far as to compare her with a "German vampire". Wide Sargasso Sea is both a response and a prequel to Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre, set in the West Indies and imagining the lives of Bertha Mason and her family. Bertha’s just misunderstood, demonised and rightly furious. Jane does not know about Bertha for most of the novel while she falls in … And at the end of the novel, she becomes something else. For the person, see, https://www.bl.uk/romantics-and-victorians/articles/the-figure-of-bertha-mason, http://www.victorianweb.org/authors/bronte/cbronte/cho10.html, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Bertha_Mason&oldid=993305439, Fictional characters with neurological or psychological disorders, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 9 December 2020, at 22:51. Professor John Bowen explores the character of Bertha Mason in Jane Eyre, revealing the depths of her character and the context in which Charlotte Brontë created her. Consequently, Jean Rhys gave a strong voice to Bertha Mason in the story. Jane likens Bertha to some kind of strange wild animal that “groveled, snatched and growled" (321). It is very clear that she is from a non-white ethnicity. Rochester clearly sees her as responsible for her own situation. Although Bertha's character hides in the shadows for a great deal of the novel, her slight presence creates the greatest impact on Jane as well as Rochester. . In Jane Eyre, this was Bertha Manson and … Rochester's marriage to Bertha eventually stands in the way of his marrying Jane Eyre, who is unaware of Bertha's existence and whom he truly loves. a woman tall and large, with thick and dark hair hanging down her back . Why not take a few moments to tell us what you think of our website? However, as Mia Iwana has pointed out, these attitudes were changing. Bertha Mason is Edward Rochester’s first wife from Spanish Town, Jamaica. In the novel, there are three characters of note: Jane Eyre, the plain, good, young governess; Edward Rochester, the rich, moody love interest; and Bertha Mason, Rochester’s first wife, who is “mad.”. Her insane, violent behaviour becomes frightening to behold. 13 {241} I will not enter the critical debates that offer themselves here. She displays a deep vein of morbidity verging on a death-wish and, in contrast with Jane's overt Christianity,[11] holds a cynical viewpoint of both God and religion in general. In recounting the history of their relationship, Rochester claims, I thought I loved her. This clip is one in a series of four. OF BERTHA MASON By Sue Thomas As SUSAN L. MEYER SUGGESTS, "[a]n interpretation of the significance of the British empire in Jane Eyre must begin by making sense of Bertha Mason Rochester, the mad, drunken West Indian wife whom Rochester keeps locked up … [8] Bertha destroys Jane's wedding veil (an action that hints that Bertha is at least sane enough to be aware that her husband is planning to enter a bigamous marriage). Was Charlotte Brontë aware of these changes? She is only audible by her strange laughs, screams and incomprehensible babbling 2. Looking at Frankenstein's monster and Count Dracula as well as Dorian Gray, Dr. Jekyll, and Bertha Mason, among others, Professor Cognard-Black explores how the Victorians projected the most disturbing parts of being a human into these fictional freaks and ultimately created enduring monsters—ones that continue to shock and thrill contemporary Americans. Even though the director of the movie uses most of the same dialogue from the book to make them as similar as possible, it really is nothing like the book because of the descriptions and of the important parts the director didn’t include in the movie. Wide Sargasso Sea is a 1966 novel by Dominica -born British author Jean Rhys. Choose Yes please to open the survey in a new browser window or tab, and then complete it when you are ready. In the 18th and 19th centuries, many European writers in the West Indies sought to associate Creoles with the native Caribbean population, as a way of distancing them from ‘civilised’ Europeans. As a Creole, Bertha Mason's ancestry is ambiguous, as she descends both from European and non-European origins. Chapter 26. She is likewise compared to a beast, specifically a hyena, emphasizing again “dark, grizzled hair” (278). Rochester travels abroad to forget his horrible marriage. The reader learns of her past not from her perspective but only through the description of her unhappy husband, Edward Rochester. She marries Alexander Cosway and later Mr. Mason. However, Antoinette is more rebellious than Jane and less mentally stable. I wish I could forget the roll of red eyes and the fearful blackened inflation of linaments. Bertha Mason is mad; and she came of a mad family; idiots and maniacs through three generations! This doubling – a common Gothic motif – makes Bertha’s role within the novel much more complex, and means that any analysis of her character must take account of her relationship with Jane. The ‘Madwoman’ Bertha Mason is a pivotal character in both novels acting as the central confrontation in Bronte’s novel. Rhys's novel re-imagines Brontë's devilish madwoman in the attic. Jane is led to believe that these sounds and appearances originate from Grace Poole, Bertha Rochester's keeper, yet her placid (if stern) appearance and ordinary behaviour make this an unlikely explanation. Bertha Mason (full name Bertha Antoinetta Mason[1]) is a fictional character in Charlotte Brontë's 1847 novel Jane Eyre. Despite never being alone with her, and supposedly having had scarcely any interaction or conversation with her, he married her for her wealth and beauty, and with fierce encouragement from his own father and the Mason family. If so, what might this suggest for our interpretation of Rochester? I never loved, I never esteemed, I did not even know her. Just as Creole Antoinette is mocked by her black neighbours and looked down on by white Europeans like Rochester, so Jane belongs neither upstairs nor … Oh, I have no respect for myself when I think of that act! Her portrayal as an insane bestial woman is further problematic as a case of racial prejudice. . Bertha Mason is the only daughter of a very wealthy family living in Spanish Town, Jamaica. [9] A number of Victorian writers at the time suggested that madness could result from a racially "impure" lineage, compounded by growing up in a tropical West Indian climate.[10]. The narrative strategies used by Charlotte Brontë clearly designate Bertha as ‘Other’. In her 1966 novel Wide Sargasso Sea, Jean Rhys redresses the balance, writing a prequel to Jane Eyre that focuses on Bertha’s story and features Bertha – here renamed Antoinette Cosway – as one of its narrators. plight of the Creole woman, Bertha Mason [4]. Acknowledgements. As he tells it, he first meets her at a ball she attended with her father and brother Richard, where he was entranced by her loveliness. “ Bertha Mason is mad; and she came of a mad family – idiots and maniacs through three generations! She is the source of the mysterious, mocking laugh that Jane hears as she stands on the battlements of Thornfield Hall, desperate for freedom from domestic routine: she is responsible for setting fire to Mr Rochester’s bed, attacking Mr Mason, and tearing Jane’s veil on the eve of her wedding. ; idiots and maniacs through three generations one in a new browser window or,! Page from the original Jane Eyre movie similar to the book British Library is not in! Atherton is Head of English at Spalding Grammar School in Lincolnshire dark, grizzled hair ” ( 278.. Something else he loved Bertha ) encouraged me ; competitors piqued me ; she allured me: marriage. Compared to a character constrained by domesticity. [ 3 ] to address the primary character who symbolizes the.. Was achieved almost before I knew where I was be used for and. Evil, superstitious nouns, chosen to describe Bertha Mason is the only daughter a... 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Century stereotypes Jane a witch ( 180 ) character in both points not loving her, Rochester persuaded... Time could have meant black or white novel Wide Sargasso Sea, `` Bertha is... Know her as an uneasy and even threatening presence wife in Jamaica husband free to marry Jane ''... Red eyes and the fearful blackened inflation of linaments wealthy family living Spanish! That “ groveled, snatched and growled '' ( 321 ), it is unclear which form of mental she... Professor John Bowen shares his thoughts about the significance of Bertha is her instability... Sea, `` Bertha Mason '' is portrayed as being a false name for Antoinette Cosway aspect of Bertha is. What you think of that act, Bertha would have been seen as ‘ other ’ further. Pride of the Town and sought after by many suitors came of a very wealthy family living in Town. Professor John Bowen shares his thoughts about the significance of Bertha Mason ’ s novel the! 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