Reflection versus Conversation Anonymous College

Reflection versus Conversation

The 19th and 20th centuries introduced readers to a variety of prominent authors who are still read today. Two of these prominent and well-read authors from each period include Charlotte Brontë and Jean Rhys respectively. Together, these authors craft a novel focused on the rich internal lives of her characters, with a strong focus on their protagonists. While both authors delve into the psyche of their protagonists, they each do it in a way fitting the time period in which they drafted their novels. In Jane Eyre and Villette, Charlotte Brontë, in 19th-century style, solely examines the psychology of her heroines, Jane and Lucy, through their private reactions and observations to the events and people around them. Following in the footsteps of Brontë, Jean Rhys examines the psychological state of her main character, Antoinette, however, she builds upon the work of her predecessor and infuses her writing with touches reminiscent of the 20th century by doing so through various direct conversations and interactions with other characters in her novel Wide Sargasso Sea.

Throughout Brontë’s Jane Eyre, Jane spends a fair amount of her time in contemplation in accordance with her more introspective...