Scarlet and Ashen in Jane Eyre
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Scarlet and Ashen
An examination of images of Fire and Ice in Jane Eyre
"SOME say the world will end in fire, / Some say in ice. / From what I've tasted of desire / I hold with those who favor fire. / But if it had to perish twice, / I think I know enough of hate / To know that for destruction ice / Is also great / And would suffice" (Robert Frost, 1920). There are no two archetypal symbols in all of literature more prominent than images of fire and images of ice. Fire, the universal emblem of inspiration, destruction, and untamable passion, often parallels images of ice, symbolizing starvation, rigidity and death, to illustrate opposing worlds of decay. Neither extreme is capable of supporting life. Such inhospitable environments are used throughout the novel Jane Eyre to kindle Jane's valiant spirit. Through recurrent images of fire and ice, Charlotte Bronte sets a cold world associated with upper class society and unwritten social standards of conformity, in contrast to a world of passionate rage, affection, and resent, which emerges as Jane breaks free from incessant confinement. Scarlet images litter the text as reminders of Jane's sentiments towards ashen portrayals of hostility, fraud, and dominance. This imagery is greatly manifested in the descriptions of Jane at Gateshead, the pupils of Lowood, and Bertha at Thornfeild...