Date of Award
2017
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelors
Department
Humanities
First Advisor
Wallace, Miriam
Area of Concentration
English
Abstract
This thesis looks at relationships between madness and identity presented in female characters within the novels Jane Eyre and Wide Sargasso Sea. Its aim is to examine the reason in which certain characters are labelled the madwoman. The first chapter argues that Jane is a character with a fragmented identity that oscillates between self-repression and intense passion, and that the madwoman, Bertha Mason is representative of a Jane who has lost to passion and become “mad”. For Jane to become whole and learn balance, or assertive autonomy, this chapter postulates that Bertha must be metaphorically defeated and absent from the narrative. The second chapter analyzes the relationship between Antoinette Cosway’s lack of a sense of self and her racial/ethnic status as a white Creole, using both the themes of religion and reflections to prove that her perceived madness is due to others’ perceptions of her ambiguous identity.
Recommended Citation
Santos, Lena, "“Myself Yet Not Quite Myself”: Women and Madness in Jane Eyre and Wide Sargasso Sea" (2017). Theses & ETDs. 5420.
https://digitalcommons.ncf.edu/theses_etds/5420