Jessica answers “Symbolism of Rochester going blind? Why is...”

Nat asked this question about Jane Eyre:

Symbolism of Rochester going blind? Why is it okay for Jane and Rochester end up together at the end?

Jessica To answer the question around blindness= Jane and Rochester's love is founded on the words that they exchange. In turn, Rochester is able to greater a…moreTo answer the question around blindness= Jane and Rochester's love is founded on the words that they exchange. In turn, Rochester is able to greater appreciate the language he shares with Jane, as his blindness enables him to concentrate more fully on words without being distracted by his vision. Moreover, Brontë might have also taken into account the fact that blindness was associated with poetry in her decision to blind Rochester. Perhaps Rochester's blindness elevated his language to a poetic status. Perhaps, also, Rochester grew more heroic in the nineteenth-century reader's mind if the reader acknowledged his apparent association with Homer and Milton "the two greatest poets" ("The Lost Senses") who also became blind at the end of their lives. Consequently, Rochester's blindness served a dual purpose: to sharpen his language capabilities and to allow him to become closer to Jane than any two people, independent of one another, could become.(less)

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