30th Annual Student Research Conference
The Cause of Her Madness: Why Mr. Rochester is the Reason for Antoinette Rochester’s Insanity in Wide Sargasso Sea and Jane Eyre
Sarah L. Chabot♦
Dr. Hena Ahmad, Faculty Mentor
In the novel Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys, there is a first person account of Mrs. Rochester’s descent into madness, which did not begin until her husband entered her life. In Jane Eyre she is downgraded into just a mad woman and is seen as the barrier that prevents Mr. Rochester from being happy. Mrs. Rochester is banished into the attic by her cruel husband rather than given proper attention and care. Given Mr. Rochester’s erratic and possessive behavior shown in both Wide Sargasso Sea and the classic Jane Eyre, the cause of Antoinette’s insanity is not inherited by her mother, as Mr. Rochester believes, but is caused by the mistreatment and lack of compassion from her British husband.
Keywords: Gender Studies
Topic(s):English
Women's and Gender Studies
Presentation Type: Oral Paper
Session: 401-3
Location: MG 1000
Time: 3:00