Chapter 27

Summary

Jane, in her room, suddenly realizes that she must leave Thornfield. She cannot bear to think of leaving Mr. Rochester, but she knows that it must be done if she wants to maintain her self-respect. She feels worse when she realizes that although she has been in her room all day, no one came to check on her. She stumbles out of her room, and Mr. Rochester, who is waiting outside, catches her. He is concerned by her silence; he expected an outburst of anger and misery. He apologizes sincerely for hurting her so badly, and she secretly forgives him on the spot. He carries her down to the library when she grows faint from distress, and revives her with wine and food. He then tries to kiss her, and she pushes him away. He is upset by the rejection, and accuses Jane of not caring about him now that she cannot marry him. He then forgets her rebuff and goes on to talk of them moving away to live together, Grace Poole being paid to stay with Bertha Mason, and Adèle going to school. He overrides her protests that she will not be his mistress, and plans their happy future together. When he realizes that she is serious about leaving, he tries to dissuade her, but she stands firm. She then retires to her room and Mr. Rochester asks her to reconsider during the night. He warns her that he will despair if she leaves.

Jane decides to leave Thornfield at night. After packing her small amount of money and some food, she silently exits the house, mentally saying goodbye to her friends and Mr. Rochester – who is awake, pacing in his room. Then, she sets down the road to nowhere in particular, just away. As she travels, she is so full of despair that she falls down once, but picks herself back off the ground (metaphor!). She sees a carriage, and asks for a ride to wherever it is going. The coachman accepts her meager amount of money though it is not enough, and they set off. On the way, Jane cries her heart out, and present-day Jane, narrating, hopes that we readers never undergo the amount of pain she felt at that time

Reaction

On one hand, I think it is ridiculous that Mr. Rochester cannot divorce Bertha Mason and marry Jane, so I sympathize with Mr. Rochester’s plan to ignore his current marriage. However, Jane is so incredibly strong in this chapter that I am amazed. Her sense of self-worth and the amount of character it takes to run away from the love of her life and her only friends is very admirable. This chapter is crucial in Jane’s development as a person, and she proves to be resolute, determined, and very adept at making decisions. I’m somewhat surprised, however, that Jane has no plan for where she is going.