Theme- Skin Deep

"The world of Jane Eye was surely a different world from ours, do you agree reader? Why think of the many issued that our dear Jane had to endure throughout her life, and think, my pupil, these themes relate to the authors social, political, and/or economic life in her own time period. My dear, is it not fascinating! There are many themes in the novel that are presented more than once throughout the story, let us get started..."

Physical appearance was a major aspect for the life of Jane Eyre. Simply because of her displeasing looks, Jane faces many conflicts that sometimes restricted her from achieving her full potential and impair her self-esteem.

You could see the way she was treated as a child and being compared to her younger, but more beautiful, cousin Georgiana:

“ ‘Poor Miss Jane it to be, pitied too, Abbot.' ‘Yes,’ responded Abbot; ‘is she were a nice, pretty child, one might compassion her forlornness; but one really cannot care for such a little toad as that’.... ‘Yes, I doat on Miss Georgiana!'...Little Darling! With her long curls and her blue eyes, and such a sweet colour as she has; just as if she were painted!-'...” (25)

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Even Jane realized the discriminatory treatment she was restricted to as a child:

“Georgia, who had a spoiled temper, a very acrid spite, a captious and insolent carriage, was universally indulged. Her beauty, pink cheeks and golden curls, seemed to give delight to all who looked at her, and to purchase indemnity for every fault” (14).

So soon was Jane exposed to the unfair treatment because of her appearance on the outside. For her entire life she felt inferior to those who were gifted with natural beauty. Still, it was not her fault that her society oppressed the 'plain' or 'boring' looking people. It was a young ladies job to be married at that time, and to be married meant that you had to posses money or beauty to attract a mate who could please you appropriately. So much stress was places on appearance for women, it was easy for certain people to be judged, left behind, or completely forgotten.

Observe how Jane felt about herself as a young lady, and her feelings towards her own physical appearance:

“It was not my habit to be disregardful of appearance, or careless of the impression I made: on the contrary, I ever wished to look as well as I could...I sometimes wished to have rosy cheeks, a straight nose, and small cherry mouth... I felt it a misfortune that I was so little, so pale, and had figures so irregular and so marked.” (100).

However, despite her discomfort in her opinion about her appearance, Jane held a strong moral value about the Skin Deep judgments that soil her society:

“There are people who seem to have no notion of sketching a character, or observing and describing salient points, either in persons or things:... Mr. Rochester was Mr. Rochester in her eyes; a gentleman, a landed proprietor- nothing more: she inquired and searched no further and evidently wondered at my wish to gain a more definite notion of his identity.” (107).

This quote was a clear example of Jane's character attacking the judgments on physical appearance. She believes that character was not Skin Deep, it was much deeper.  A persons values lied within their inner morals, practices, and spirit. Character was not appearance of wealth at all, they were mere decorations of the Human on the inside of the clothes, money, and property they own. Wanting to got to know a person should imply their personality character than, not their wealth background and public opinion.