The Heroine’s Journey

09/05/2013 Jessica Davidson

In storytelling, the Heroine’s Journey is structured the same way as the Hero’s Journey but the
feminine experience of the story tends to differ from the standard masculine interpretation. It is the
same basic myth but with a feminine twist.
The Hero’s Journey monomyth was identified by Joseph Campbell in his book on comparative
mythology, The Hero With A Thousand Faces. However, the feminine experience in these myths
tends to be limited to a passive role; the women are there just to serve the male gods. In an
interview with Maureen Murdock, Campbell said that women did not need to make the hero’s
journey: “In the whole mythological tradition the woman is there. All she has to do is to realise that
she’s the place that people are trying to get to.”*
I think most women, and many men, would agree that statement is, well, bollocks. I’m not about to
launch into a deconstruction of the blind spots of the patriarchy. Suffice to say, Campbell’s position
is out of date, to say the least.

What the myths mean

The myths are about facing unconsciousness, growing up and discovering your true identity.
Obviously men and women tend to do this in slightly different ways, and even within genders there
is a lot of variation. Arguably, we all have a hero and a heroine inside us. But when it comes to
storytelling there are times, with a female protagonist, that you don’t want to be making her do
things a woman just wouldn’t do.
Generally speaking, men are more likely to get physical, get into a fight and do a lot of running
around and shouting. Women, on the other hand, are more likely to use their wits and intelligence,
to outsmart the bad guys instead of punching them in the face. There are obvious exceptions, and
sometimes a good old left hook is exactly what you need.
Ultimately, both the hero and heroine myths are about becoming whole. The story brings the hero or
heroine face to face with their unconsciousness, forcing them to grow and change. They are
challenged to complete the Sacred Marriage, the union of opposites, to be reborn as a whole person.
In story, this is usually depicted as a relationship with the opposite sex, but in reality this is about
internal wholeness – the marriage of opposites within.

The Heroine’s Journey: Structure

Act One introduces the heroine in her Ordinary World and shows what is missing in her life, where
she is unconscious, not fully formed, or in need of healing.
Act Two launchers her into the Special World of the story where she will confront her problems,
form allies and make enemies, and either rise to the challenge issued in act one, or not.
Act Three is the return to the Ordinary World where we see our heroine putting her new found
wisdom/skills/whatever she’s learnt into practice.
Here’s the whole journey:
1. In Act 1 we meet the Heroine in her ORDINARY WORLD
2. The Heroine receives a CALL TO ADVENTURE
3. Reluctant to change, she REFUSES THE CALL
4. But after MEETING THE MENTOR, changes her mind
5. The Heroine rises to the challenge and CROSSES THE FIRST THRESHOLD
6. In Act 2 the Heroine encounters TESTS in this Special World, making ALLIES AND ENEMIES
7. The Heroine APPROACHES THE INMOST CAVE where
8. She experiences the SUPREME ORDEAL
9. Leading to a REWARD where she Seizes the Sword
10. In Act 3 the Heroine is pursued on THE ROAD BACK to the Ordinary World
11. The Heroine crosses the threshold and experiences another death followed by a
RESURRECTION
12. Transformed, the Heroine RETURNS WITH THE ELIXIR to share her Boon/Treasure with the
Ordinary World.
Over the following weeks we’ll look at the Heroine’s Journey in detail using examples from the
2011 film adaptation of Jane Eyre. First up: Jane Eyre’s Ordinary World

The Heroine’s Journey: Ordinary World

13/05/2013 Jessica Davidson
The heroine’s journey begins in the Ordinary World of the story. This is where we discover the
background and context of the protagonist’s world and get a sense of the inner conflict that needs
resolution.
For the heroine, her ordinary world is often one of imprisonment in a domestic environment. She is
enclosed, trapped doing the chores, and longing for escape. There may be a bitch of a stepmother to
deal with. The heroine is a lost child or parentless. She may be safe, despite the cruelty of those
around her, but it’s also deathly dull.

Jane Eyre’s Ordinary World

So how does this play out in the 2011 film adaptation of Jane Eyre? This version of Charlotte
Bronte’s book plays around with the structure and a large part of the story is told in flashback. Jane
is played by Mia Wasikowska, and Mr Rochester is played by Michael Fassbender.
Jane is young but has an old soul. She is humble and guarded but with a burning desire for
something more, and the story follows the awakening of her femininity and passion for life.

We first meet Jane as she leaves Thornfield. She is clearly upset about something and runs onto the
moor, collapsing and crying while a thunderstorm rages in the background. She walks through the
rain and finally spies a light in a house and drags herself to the door. A man finds her and carries her
inside. This is St John Rivers and he lives in this house with his two sisters, Diana and Mary. The
sisters take care of Jane and try to find out who she is.
We then flashback to when Jane was an orphan living with her aunt, Mrs Reed. Jane is tormented by
one of her cousins. After the boy hits her with a book, drawing blood, she fights back and is dragged
off and locked in the Red Room. This is the room in which her uncle died and strange noises issue
from the chimney. Jane is terrified and hammers on the door so hard she knocks herself
unconscious.
So Jane’s ordinary world doesn’t seem particularly safe, certainly not when she was a child. But she
is parentless and suffering at the hands of an evil stepmother figure in the shape of Mrs Reed. Jane’s
longing to escape is so fierce that she knocks herself out. With the Rivers family she is also on the
edge of unconsciousness, and although she has found safety, as we will discover, St John is deathly
dull. Jane is ready to awaken, to receive her Call to Adventure.

The Heroine’s Journey: Call to Adventure

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We’ve met our heroine in her Ordinary World and discovered she is ready for a change. Now comes
the Call to Adventure. The heroine experiences a challenge to the status quo that forces her to adapt.
She may recognise the desolate state of her current life and awaken to a sense of meaninglessness or
emptiness. This means that she doesn’t know who she really is, or that her true self isn’t recognised
by those around her.
There may also be an act of destructiveness as she tries to break free. A chance of freedom may
arise. The heroine wants to move out of the apparent safety of the ordinary world into the world of
spirit and adventure to find more of life. But things are rarely that simple.

Jane Eyre’s Call to Adventure

Mrs Reed has had enough of Jane’s attitude so she has called Mr Brocklehurst to deal with her. Mr
Brocklehurst runs Lowood School for Girls. He tries to intimidate Jane into behaving herself but
she refuses to be cowed and sasses him. Mrs Reed arranges for Jane to attend Lowood and warns
Mr Brocklehurst that she is deceitful. Jane is having none of this and has a massive go at her aunt,
telling her she is not a liar. Her dead parents and God are watching and see everything that happens.
She tells Mrs Reed she will be judged for the way she has treated her orphan niece.
Later, through a foreboding mist, Jane is taken to the school.
So Jane has recognised her desolate state but is powerless against the forces arrayed against her. She
calls on God and her dead parents as her witnesses. She wants to break free but can’t fight these
adults who have control of her life. She will escape from the torment of living with her cruel aunt,
but what awaits her at Lowood school?

The Heroine’s Journey: Refusal of the Call

27/05/2013 Jessica Davidson
Our heroine has received the Call to Adventure and now must respond. At this point there is often a
Refusal of the Call. The heroine is reluctant to change and scared of the unknown.
In the heroine’s journey this may involve taking on the role of the spiritual orphan and the
recognition of how alone she is. The heroine may be repressed by an evil witch or experience a
mother figure as too protective. There is a conflict between the safety of home and the need for
change and escape.

Jane Eyre’s Refusal

Jane enters Lowood School for Girls and is led into a room lined with other girls, where she is
stripped of her fine clothes.
Now we flash forward again to the Rivers household where Jane is recovering but determined to
never be found. She is hiding. Jane eats with the family and we discover she has given them a false
name: they call her Miss Elliot. The Rivers sisters, Diana and Mary, are pleased to have Jane for
company. Jane wants to work and St John says he’ll help her find something suitable. When he
enquires into her education, she flashes back to Lowood school where she was beaten with a cane.
So Jane enters the unknown at Lowood and is stripped of her past life, symbolised by her fine
clothes. She lost her true family and has been rejected by her surrogate family, and is now a spiritual
orphan.
Meanwhile, we discover Jane has lied to St John and his sisters about who she is. This is another
attempt to sever her links to her past. She has finally found safety but she is not being true to
herself. She is still alone and allowing her true nature to be repressed. How long can she hold out
before the truth breaks free?

The Heroine’s Journey: Meeting the Mentor

03/06/2013 Jessica Davidson
The heroine has refused the call to adventure through fear of change and needs a push to get her
moving. She is ready to Meet the Mentor and receive help or advice for the journey ahead.
In the heroine’s journey the mentor can often be seen as quite ruthless and uncompromising. Her
guides may be experienced as captors, but with supernatural aid, she can break free of them. She
may receive an object to help on the journey, but this is unlikely to be the kind of object a hero
would receive, such as a sword.

Jane Eyre’s Mentor

At Lowood, Jane attends classes with the other girls. She connects with one of them when they
share a glance across the room. This is Helen Burns, who then gets into trouble for not paying
attention. Mr Brocklehurst watches as Helen is beaten with a cane. Jane drops her slate in shock at
Helen’s treatment so Mr Brocklehurst punishes her by making her stand on a stool. The other girls
are told to shun her and deny her their love. Jane is left standing on the stool for hours, but Helen
sneaks in to give her some bread.

Later, Jane and Helen talk in the garden and become friends. Helen shares her philosophy of love
and forgiveness. She tells Jane that she is loved and guarded by invisible spirits all around her.
Flash forward to the Rivers household and one of the sisters admires Jane’s drawings. She shows
them to her brother who is impressed. St John looks at the drawing of himself and asks if this is
how Jane sees him and comments on how fierce he looks.
So the mentor is Helen Burns who shares her spiritual philosophy with Jane. She doesn’t receive an
object to help on her journey, but an idea – that she is loved, that despite appearances, she is never
truly alone. The bread that Helen gives her can also be seen as spiritual sustenance, as in ‘give us
this day our daily bread’.
Meanwhile, Jane’s drawings reveal her true feelings for St John. She sees him as fierce, cold and
aloof. He is undoubtedly a good man, but where’s the passion? Jane is ready for the next stage of
her journey.

The Heroine’s Journey: Crossing the Threshold

10/06/2013 Jessica Davidson
The heroine has met her mentor and been nudged into changing. Now she must enter the Special
World of the story and Cross the First Threshold. This is where the stakes are raised and the
challenge must be faced. It is a leap of faith.
In the heroine’s journey this may be experienced as a fortunate fall or failure. Things may not seem
to be improving but there’s a chance of freedom. She is released from her captors and seems to have
temporarily escaped imprisonment. Here is where the heroine enters the sensory world of romance,
emotion and fantasy, and moves beyond the rational world where she knew and understood the
rules, even if they did her no good. In this special world, she will begin to discover her true self.

Jane Eyre Crosses the First Threshold

At Lowood, Helen is ill with typhus and dying, but is happy that she is going home to God. She
tells Jane she has a passion for living and that one day she’ll be blissfully happy. Jane stays with her
friend through the night. By morning, Helen is dead. Jane is carried from the room, distraught.
Flash forward to the Rivers household and the sisters are leaving for their jobs as governesses. St
John tells Jane he has found her a job as a school mistress and somewhere to live. Jane is pleased to
accept the job but St John is surprised. He thinks the job is too lowly for Jane, but she doesn’t mind,
saying her accomplishments can be saved for later.
Jane sweeps her new cottage while St John lights a fire and watches her surreptitiously. Jane
wanders outside and hears her name being called on the wind coming across the moors. St John is
worried Jane will be alone out here, but Jane is pleased to be here. This is her first home where
she’ll be independent. He says it is small and plain, but she replies that it will suit her very well.
Flash back to Lowood and Jane is leaving as a young woman having become a popular and much
loved teacher. She says goodbye to the children and heads off to start work at Thornfield.
So Jane has found a kind of freedom with St John and the chance of a job as a school mistress. She
is happy she has found a degree of independence but she is still repressing that passion for life
Helen saw in her all those years ago. Clearly Jane is in need of some healing. She can still hear her
past calling to her. It is time for her to enter the Special World of the story and awaken her deeper
femininity and sensuality. She can’t stay locked in her intellect forever. Jane escapes from Lowood
and is on her way to Thornfield – a world of romance and fantasy.

The Heroine’s Journey: Tests, Allies, Enemies

17/06/2013 Jessica Davidson
Our heroine has Crossed the First Threshold and entered the Special World of the story where she
will be tested before confronting the ordeal to come. This part of the story brings out the heroine’s
potential for change.
In the heroine’s journey this stage may be marked by a rape trauma of some kind. She is challenged
to recognise the true nature of her seducer and choose between the dark and the light man – one will
imprison her while the other will set her free. The heroine awakens to the romantic love myth and
confronts the dark lover. She may find herself enclosed in another domestic imprisonment and must
use her instincts to outwit her adversary.

Jane Eyre’s Tests, Allies and Enemies

Jane travels to Thornfield at night and is greeted by Mrs Fairfax who welcomes her warmly. Jane is
to work as a governess and is confused when she discovers the house doesn’t belong to Mrs Fairfax,
but to a Mr Rochester. Mrs Fairfax is the housekeeper and chatters away as she shows Jane to her
room.
The next day Jane admires the house. Mrs Fairfax tells her they keep it in a constant state of
readiness as they never know when Mr Rochester will be home. She introduces Jane to Adele, a
French orphan whom Mr Rochester has adopted as his ward. Jane teaches Adele and they develop a
warm, close relationship. Adele tells her tales of the woman who is said to walk the halls at night
and can walk through walls. Jane tells her it’s nonsense.
Later, Jane gazes wistfully out of the window across the countryside. Mrs Fairfax tells her how
isolated it is here and Jane shares her wish that women could have action and adventure in their
lives like men. She wants to see beyond the horizon, see a city, and speak with a man. Mrs Fairfax
sends her out to post some letters and get some fresh air.
While Jane is walking in the woods to the village she comes across a man riding a horse. The horse
is spooked and throws the man to the ground. Jane helps him back to his horse, despite him being
rather grumpy and rude. She tells him she is the governess at Thornfield but he doesn’t tell her who
he is.
Jane arrives back at the house to discover Mr Rochester has returned and wants to meet her. She
discovers it was Rochester she ran into in the woods. They sit by the fire and talk. He tells her Adele
has improved in the short time she has taught her and tries to find out more about her; he wants to
hear her tale of woe. Jane says she has none. He is rude, abrupt and callous, teasing her about how
she bewitched his horse, and calls her an imp. Jane hits back with some of her usual sass and there’s
an obvious attraction between them. Rochester admires Jane’s drawings but then calls them
peculiar, and dismisses her curtly.
So Jane finds herself in a strange isolated house which may or may not be haunted. She makes
friends in the form of Adele and Mrs Fairfax, but can’t quite understand Mr Rochester. There is
something attractive about him but he is also dangerous and unpredictable. Is he an ally or an
enemy? She is getting drawn into a world she doesn’t understand.

The Heroine’s Journey: Approach the Inmost Cave

24/06/2013 Jessica Davidson
Our heroine is now enmeshed in a strange new world with different rules she doesn’t understand.
She must prepare for the descent into darkness to face the ultimate test.
In the heroine’s journey this stage often involves a confrontation with the dark masculine, like
Bluebeard, or the powerless father. The heroine realises the father cannot save her – she must save
herself. This means a journey into the underworld to find the sensitive man, which may involve
some sort of abduction, death or dismemberment. This is the beginning of the transformation from
maidenhood to full womanhood.

Jane Eyre Approaches the Inmost Cave

Jane eats lunch with Adele and Mrs Fairfax while the sound of doors slamming and men shouting
carry through the house. Gun shots ring out. Jane observes that Mr Rochester is very abrupt and
changeable and Mrs Fairfax says he’s okay when he’s in a good mood. Jane watches him from the
window as he shoots randomly over the wall outside.
Jane and Adele play badminton in the garden while Mr Rochester helps the gardeners. A look passes
briefly between Jane and Rochester. Later, Rochester broods at the piano, banging out random
notes. He tells Jane to sit with him and they talk. He teases her some more and they exchange some
sexually charged banter. He tells her she is otherworldly, but she won’t take any of his nonsense,
speaking openly and directly, which he admires. He wants them to speak as equals but, as Jane
points out, she is his paid subordinate. Rochester drops hints about his tormented past: he is seeking
pleasure since happiness was denied him. When he calls Jane an angel of light she says she can’t
follow him, that he’s talking nonsense. Rochester points out that she isn’t naturally austere just like
he isn’t naturally vicious. They share a common nature.

Later, Jane wanders the halls and looks at a painting of a nude. That night she hears noises in the
hallway and goes out to investigate. She discovers Mr Rochester’s room ablaze and wakes him.
Together they fight the fire. Rochester disappears to find out what happened. He returns at dawn,
telling her to say nothing about what happened. He holds her hand and says he owes her his life and
that he knew she would do him good in someway. They almost kiss, but Jane leaves saying she is
cold.
Later that morning she discovers Rochester has gone to visit Blanche Ingram. Mrs Fairfax thinks he
is planning to propose. Jane is shaken but keeps it together, repressing her true feelings. She teaches
Adele but her hands are shaking. Later she walks alone in the freezing garden and sits drawing
frantically by the window.
So Jane appears to have found a kindred soul in Mr Rochester but she is having trouble
understanding him. She seems afraid of her feelings and unwilling to surrender to them. Her
feminine sensuality is starting to awaken and she finds herself drawn to this damaged man who is
obviously seeking redemption. They are both trapped in cages and in need of healing. But can
Rochester be trusted? Just as the connection between them is formed he disappears and seems intent
on marrying someone else. Perhaps Jane is right to distrust her feelings. She is heading towards the
Ordeal.

The Heroine’s Journey: Ordeal

01/07/2013 Jessica Davidson
Our heroine has journeyed to the underworld and is now ready to confront her greatest fear. All
could be lost as she is pushed to the edge in a life or death moment.
In the heroine’s journey this stage is the descent into darkness and atonement with the Great
Mother: a quest for integration and apotheosis. This is where the heroine discovers she is her own
mother, that her greatest challenge is herself. The heroine may be tempted to give up and not finish
her quest. She must confront the failure of the false father and ‘slay the dragon of female
inferiority’. In other words, she must reconcile with the dark side of the feminine – the maiden
confronts the crone.

Jane Eyre’s Ordeal

Mr Rochester returns with Miss Ingram and other guests. He orders Jane to be in the drawing room
later. Jane attends, as directed, and stays silent while the guests bitch about governesses. Rochester
seems to be ignoring her and Miss Ingram is vacuous. Jane leaves but Rochester follows her out,
demanding to know why she’s not talking to him. Suddenly Richard Mason turns up and Rochester
is clearly troubled.
That night there are more strange sounds in the house and Jane goes to see what has happened.
Mason has been badly injured. Rochester asks Jane to dress the wound while he goes to get a
doctor, forbidding Jane and Mason from speaking to each other. While he’s away Jane notices a
draft coming from behind a curtain hanging on the wall. She listens at the wall and hears a thump.
Rochester returns with the doctor who takes Mason away.
Rochester talks to Jane about his past, hinting again at a grave error he made which he is now
paying for, and telling her how she revives him. Jane misunderstands, thinking he is talking about
Miss Ingram. He puts her straight and Jane admits she would do anything that was right to secure
his happiness. Jane runs off, not knowing what to make of what has just happened, but finally
allows herself to smile.
Jane receives news that her aunt, Miss Reed, is ill and has been asking for her. She finds Rochester
in the garden messing about with Miss Ingram and asks for her wages so she can visit her aunt.
Rochester asks if she trusts him and she says she doesn’t. Jane visits her aunt who tells her she has
an uncle, John Eyre. She writes to him, overjoyed to have found a living relative.
She returns to Thornfield to find Rochester waiting for her. But Mrs Fairfax tells her Rochester is
making preparations to return to Europe and she is sure there’ll be a wedding announcement soon.
Jane tries to keep her cool but she’s clearly upset. She gives her congratulations to Rochester and
tells him she will seek a new job. After some more confusion and misunderstandings, Rochester
proposes and she accepts, and they kiss under the tree. A storm is blowing in and they arrive back at
the house in the rain. Jane is ecstatic.
Mrs Fairfax warns Jane to be careful, but Jane is in a daze, wandering the gardens where everything
seems unreal. The wedding day arrives and she gets into her white dress. Rochester marches her to
the church, back to his usual gruff and moody self. The wedding is interrupted by the arrival of
Richard Mason and his lawyer who informs them that Mr Rochester is already married to Mason’s
sister.
Rochester marches Jane back to Thornfield to meet his wife, Bertha, who is locked in a room for
her own protection as she is insane. Rochester calls her his own demon. Bertha spits at Jane, a drop
of blood landing on her pristine white wedding dress. Jane strips off the dress and cries, and puts
back on her old plain dress.
So Jane is finally confronted by the truth. Rochester has been lying to her. Her feelings have been
awakened but she has been dragged down into the horror of the confrontation with the dark
feminine in the form of poor insane Bertha locked away in shame. All her hopes have been
destroyed, the dream is over. It is hard to see what possible reward could come of this sad turn of
events.

The Heroine’s Journey: Reward

08/07/2013 Jessica Davidson
Our heroine has lived through the worst in her Ordeal and will now be transformed. The
confrontation with death brings about the change necessary for her to move forward on her journey
and Seize the Sword. In other words, she finally takes possession of what she was really after all
along – her true self.
In the heroine’s journey this stage is about discovering she has the qualities she needs within
herself. Now she knows who she is and what she really needs. The reward is wholeness and self-
possession.

Jane Eyre’s Reward

Jane emerges from her room to find Rochester waiting for her. He apologises and tries to explain
himself. His father wanted him to marry Bertha for money, but later she became violent as she
descended into madness. Rather than send her to a madhouse, he kept her locked up at Thornfield,
sparing her from bedlam. Jane admits she loves Rochester but tells him she can’t stay. She must
respect herself and do what she feels is right. Rochester wants her to come to him of her own free
will, he wants an equal. Jane prays for strength and finally manages to free herself from him.

So Jane’s reward is self-knowledge and self-respect. Now she knows she wants an equal partnership
too, but Rochester isn’t her equal. He is still married. If she stayed they could never be true equals,
their relationship would be built on a lie. So despite her love for him, she must leave. But the story
isn’t over yet. Jane must take the Road Back.

The Heroine’s Journey: The Road Back

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Our heroine has survived the Ordeal and received her Reward. Now she must return to the ordinary
world with her new knowledge or skills and face the consequences of confronting the darkness of
the Ordeal. This stage marks a shift in focus and may give rise to new goals.
In the heroine’s journey this stage is marked by a magic flight and split desires. The heroine may be
rescued from without by the heroic mother, or find reconciliation with the parents. There may also
be a realisation that to find the prince she must escape again. In other words, her quest to find
wholeness and live in a way that is true to herself means she must put her self-knowledge to the test.

Jane Eyre on the Road Back

Jane leaves Thornfield and runs away across the moor. Meanwhile Rochester breaks into her room
to find her gone. He shouts her name from the window. Jane wanders the moor in a storm and cries.
Cut to Jane working happily at the village school. St John arrives and asks how she’s getting on,
saying they are alike. She is ambitious and he fears the little school won’t hold her interest for long.
He looks at her drawings and takes one.
Jane sits in her cottage at night. There’s a knock at the door: it’s Mr Rochester, come to her through
a snow storm. They kiss passionately. Cut to St John standing at the door. Jane lets him in and he
calls her by her true name – Miss Eyre. He noticed the name she signed on the bottom of her
drawing. St John tells Jane her uncle, John Eyre, has died leaving her all his property worth
£20,000. She’s rich! Jane is shocked and wants to share the money with him and his sisters. This is
her chance to finally have a family.
Later the family pray together and bid each other a goodnight. St John gives Jane a very chaste kiss.
He’s certainly no Rochester.
So Jane has escaped Thornfield but her passion for Rochester still burns inside her. She is torn
between wanting to leave her past behind and start a new life, and return to her lover. The
inheritance opens a path forward and she sees a way to create a new family for herself. In today’s
money £20,000 would be more than £1.3 million. But what kind of future could she have with St
John?

The Heroine’s Journey: Resurrection

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Our heroine has taken the Road Back to the Ordinary World and must now be resurrected. This
stage is about purification and the purging of the past, and it takes us to the climax which requires
another death. This is where the heroine must demonstrate what she has learnt.
In the heroine’s journey this stage often involves a release of creativity as the heroine discovers she
has power over life and death. She can find a way to make an impact in the world rather than try to
rule it.
Jane Eyre’s Resurrection
Jane has just received news of her inheritance but now comes another twist. St John Rivers
proposes. He is about to leave for India and wants Jane to accompany him as a missionary’s wife.
He says they are fellow souls. Jane doesn’t answer him straight away, she wants to think about it.
Later, while walking on a path near the moor, she meets St John and agrees to go with him to India,
but not as his wife. She wants to go as his sister. After telling him her heart is silent, he says he will
speak for it, declaring they will marry anyway and enough of love will follow. Jane isn’t impressed
by this and refuses; she just wants to be friends and to marry him would kill her. St John becomes
angry and demands to know who she loves, telling her to crush that passion. But Jane hears
Rochester calling her name over the moors and runs off to find him.
So Jane is finally listening to her heart. On the subject of St John it is silent because he wants to
control her. She knows Rochester is her true partner. The past is purged and she runs away to find
the man she loves.

The Heroine’s Journey: Return with the Elixir

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Our heroine has reached the end of her journey and returns transformed. This stage is about the
ascension of the new mother. The heroine is changed and so the world is changed. She can now start
a new life, establish a new family or community.

Jane Eyre Returns with the Elixir

Jane returns to Thornfield to find it burnt to the ground. She wanders around the blackened ruins,
distraught. Mrs Fairfax turns up and tells her what happened. Bertha escaped and set the house on
fire. Mr Rochester saved everyone then went back inside for his wife, but she jumped from the roof.
She tells Jane she needn’t have run away, she could have come to stay with her.
Jane finds Rochester sitting under the tree where he proposed to her. He has been blinded in the fire
and looks dishevelled and defeated. Jane takes his hand and he recognises her. He feels her face in
disbelief. She tells him she has come back to him. He thinks it’s a dream and she tells him to
awaken.

So Jane’s future is secured. With the death of Bertha, she is free to meet with Rochester as an equal,
and her fortune will certainly help. The film ends rather abruptly and is ambiguous. We don’t get
the reassurance of the book, telling us of their marriage and subsequent children, or that Rochester
regains some of his sight. All that is left hanging and we are left wandering, like Rochester, whether
this is just a dream.
What happens next is up to us to decide.