Charlotte Bronte: 10 facts part2

6. Jane Eyre was partly autobiographical

In the novel a plain governess who started life in a harsh charity school falls in love with a married man. Sound familiar? Charlotte and her sisters attended the Clergy Daughters' School in Lancashire, where the freezing conditions, inadequate nutrition and strict values meant many children suffered poor health, and her two eldest sisters were sent home to die; much like Jane’s friend Helen in the novel. The ‘mad woman’ upstairs has been thought to be inspired by her addict brother Branwell, who would often rage in his room through the night, drunk or high on laudanum. 

7. She had famous friends

Once the popularity of Jane Eyre had established Charlotte as a respectable writer, her publisher persuaded her to make occasional visits to London, where she was introduced to a circle of notable writers and critics. Among her friends and acquaintances were: the social essayist Harriet Martineau; the novelist and author of Charlotte’s first biography, Elizabeth Gaskell; and William Thackeray. 

8.Charlotte was a proto-feminist

‘I am no bird; and no net ensnares me: I am a free human being with an independent will.’

Jane Eyre is a fiercely independent woman guided by strict moral and religious values, destined to make her own decisions and pay her own way in life. A female protagonist with such a clear sense of self was highly unusual in Victorian literature; as such, the novel has been described as a feminist manifesto with proto-feminist themes. Jane refuses to bend to the demands made of her by the male characters simply because she is of lower class and female. The novel ends with the power balance rectified as she becomes financially independent and Rochester is physically dependent on her.

9. Her honeymoon was in Ireland

After much persuading, her father finally agreed to Charlotte marrying his curate, Arthur Bell Nicholls, who had been in love with her for many years. They married in June 1854 and took their honeymoon in Banagher in County Offaly, Ireland.

10. She may have died from morning sickness

Not long after marrying Nicholls, Charlotte fell pregnant. However, the pregnancy was burdened with nausea and fainting. She died on 31 March, aged 38. There have been many speculations on the cause of death; one is that she died of extreme dehydration and malnutrition from severe morning sickness.