I have to say that Jane is my favorite character. However in
many respects, I wonder if Mrs. Reed has always been the heartless woman that
she is towards Jane. In this era many people
prove to be cruel to others, in many ways we expect it from the men in this
time but not the women. Mrs. Reed is
expected to keep her word to her husband and care for Jane but she abuses her
in place of compassion. I feel deep
sorrow for Mrs. Reed and torn between to ideas of the person she is. The first is that Mrs. Reed has always had
deep resentment for Jane. It could be
because of the standing of Jane’s parents, even though Jane is family her parents
had no real standing and left nothing to help towards their daughters future. The
only other thing that I can think is that Jane hold a key to Mrs. Reeds heart. This would be because her husband cared for
Jane so much, that not only would he have taken her in but he would have
planned for her future also. This would
mean that Jane would have a special place in Mr. Reeds heart, maybe Mrs. Reed
truly has no idea how to care for a child that is not her own? So does Mr. Reed
influence the woman Mrs. Reed is or has become from the grave?
I disagree. The resentment and hateful behavior Mrs. Reed displays towards Jane can in no way be excused because Jane came from a family of lesser standing. Placing a monetary value on a child, who is of relation to you, is selfish and petty. Regardless of how she feels towards Jane, or if she cannot relate to her, she made a promise to her husband to take good care of her, and to treat Jane as if she were her own child. As a wife, her duty is to follow through with the promise she made to her husband. Morally, what kind of person is she to resent a child for not having any money? Jane can't help her financial situation any more than she can help the weather. Mrs. Reed is a spiteful, mean spirited woman, and there is absolutely no excuse for her behavior.
ReplyDeleteI really don't think that Meg is excusing Mrs. Reed's actions--more just trying to understand her, which is always a very useful exercise. After all, isn't it always fun to try to figure out what makes our villains so villainous?
ReplyDeleteWe should talk more about this issue after everyone finishes the reading for Wednesday--and we get our final view of Mrs. Reed.
I was actually thinking that Mrs. Reed is evil--period. I did wonder why she was calling for Jane in order to give Jane news of a surviving relative; in some way I too wanted absolution for Mrs. Reed on her death bed. Then I realized that she only wanted to repent for selfish reasons, making her all the more cruel in my mind. I think that what makes a really amazing evil character is teasing the reader with the hope of finding that one strand of goodness in them; by dangling that "hope carrot" in front of the reader and then not satisfying the reader makes that evil character all the more vicious, creating a character whom I can't help but love to hate.
ReplyDeleteAnother thought: it is not just Jane that Mrs. Reed was cruel to. Considering the way her biological children were raised, including the premeditated estrangement between her daughters, Mrs. Reed was not a great mother. In spoiling and pampering her own kids, she ruined them for their adult lives, rendering them incapable of being socially productive and responsible adults.
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