Extra Blog #1 - Jane Eyre's Mrs. Reed

I wanted to use one of the remaining blogs to talk about Jane Eyre’s very own Mrs. Reed specifically. Mrs. Reed is Jane’s mean and cruel aunt. She is not biologically related to Jane, but she is Mrs. Reed’s husband’s sister’s daughter, so therefore, her aunt. The reason that she hates Jane so much is because she was forced by her husband’s death wish that she always take care of Jane. She also does not like Jane because Mr. Reed loved her more than their own children. She spoiled her own children and hated on Jane, treating her like garbage. She never thought of Jane as one of her own, she hardly thought of her as a child at all. She sent Jane away to school partially because that seemed to be what Jane wanted, not that she really cared, and that way she wouldn’t have to deal with her.  Mrs. Reed never realized what horrible, rude children she had until John tried to use all of her money to gamble. After she said no and he killed himself, she realized how horrible she was to Jane and wanted to try and make up for it. She couldn’t make up for it, and she died shortly after.

Bronte, Charlotte. Jane Eyre. New York: Barnes and Noble Classics, 2003. Print