In the novel Jane Eyre, there is a noticeable difference between the characters and their desire for
certain relationships and their way of expressing their emotions. This difference in what one
seeks for in a relationship can be traced back to the relationship with their parents as a child.
Parental figures play an important role in a child's development since a broken relationship might
give children the wrong idea about how each gender should fit into a marriage.
An individual growing up with an absent parental figure causes children to misunderstand the
traditional gender roles in a relationship, leading one to desire traits in relationships that others
with this knowledge may not ask for. The traditional gender norms, one in which the husband is
dominant towards his wife as the wife takes part in feminine activities such as housework, is
what is commonly learned by children as they see how their parents play a role in their family.
Although these stereotypes are normal to families with this familial structure, families without
this balance between the husband and wife leads their children to assume differently of how the
world's gender norms work. An example of someone who interprets gender in this way is Jane.
Jane’s father is absent in her life causing her to not see how men take part in a family. One may
think that Jane’s connection to her mother will strongly influence her to become an extremely
feminine person as she grows older, but in this case connection plays a greater role than presence
of a parental figure. A child tends to become more similar to a parent that they love and admire
than one that they despise to be around. This connection between parent and child plays a great
role as a child that despise their parental figure could easily rebel against their caregiver and have
a distorted view on how they are meant to play their gender role in a relationship. In Jane’s case
she does not have a father figure to rely on and is unable to have a successful connection with her
mother figure, leading her to rebel from the traditional ideas of what a woman should be, as she
does not want to be similar to the mother figure that was emotionally abused towards her. This is
why in the future Jane is unwilling to accept gifts from her partners and despised being looked
down upon. Jane does not want to take part of the traditional gender roles that her mother took
part in, making her stronger and seeking emotional connection and passion in a relationship. The
difference in how a child with both parental figures and their understanding of gender roles is
extremely contrasted to Jane’s outlook on gender norms and marriage showcasing the
tremendous effect on which a lack of parental figures can change one’s thoughts and interfere
with one’s future.
A child who has both parental figures during their childhood is able to recognize the necessary
place that each gender must play in, raising the child to be able to align with their assigned
gender role and express emotions in a suitable and appropriate manner.