Jane Eyre [RNIB Edition] characters

Appears from the start

An orphan raised as an unwanted dependent in her aunt's household at Gateshead. Jane is observant, passionate, and fiercely conscious of injustice. After resisting the cruelty of her cousin John and the Reed family, she is sent away to school.

Appears from the start

Jane's wealthy maternal aunt, who promised her dying husband that she would care for Jane but regards the girl with resentment. She favors her own children and treats Jane as morally suspect whenever Jane objects to their abuse.

Appears from the start

Mrs Reed's spoiled fourteen-year-old son. He bullies Jane physically and uses his position as the household's heir to demand obedience from her and the servants.

Appears from the start

A nursemaid at Gateshead who can be sharp with Jane but also offers her the household's most genuine moments of affection. Her songs and stories provide Jane with rare comfort.

First appears in chapter 4

The clergyman who controls Lowood Institution, the charity school proposed for Jane. He presents severity and deprivation as religious discipline and accepts Mrs Reed's accusation that Jane is deceitful.

First appears in chapter 5

A thoughtful older pupil at Lowood whom Jane meets during her first difficult days there. Helen bears punishment with a Christian patience Jane finds both admirable and hard to understand, and she becomes Jane's first close friend.

First appears in chapter 5

Lowood's kind and capable superintendent. Miss Temple treats the girls with dignity, helps them during hunger and illness, and listens fairly when Jane is publicly condemned by Mr Brocklehurst.

First appears in chapter 11

The elderly housekeeper at Thornfield Hall, who receives Jane warmly when she arrives to work as a governess. Her manner is practical and hospitable, though she cannot answer all Jane's questions about the house.

First appears in chapter 11

Jane's lively young pupil at Thornfield, a French-speaking girl under Mr Rochester's guardianship. Adèle loves gifts, clothes, songs, and attention, and needs patient instruction more than strict discipline.

First appears in chapter 11

A servant at Thornfield associated with an unsettling laugh Jane hears from an upper floor. Mrs Fairfax identifies her as a seamstress, but the household's guarded behavior leaves Jane uncertain about what happens in that part of the house.

Also known as Edward Fairfax Rochester

First appears in chapter 12

The owner of Thornfield Hall and Adèle's guardian. Jane first meets him without knowing his identity when his horse falls on an icy road. He is abrupt and commanding, but accepts practical help from the unknown governess.

First appears in chapter 17

A beautiful, accomplished young woman from a prominent family who visits Thornfield with a fashionable house party. Her intimacy with Rochester and the expectations of their social circle lead Jane to regard her as his likely bride.

First appears in chapter 18

A visitor from the West Indies whose arrival at Thornfield disturbs Rochester. Mason behaves pleasantly toward the other guests, but his past connection with their host is clearly important and is kept from Jane.

First appears in chapter 26

Rochester's wife, whom he has confined in the upper part of Thornfield under Grace Poole's care. Her existence, concealed from Jane and the neighborhood, makes Rochester's attempted marriage to Jane invalid.

First appears in chapter 28

A reserved young clergyman who helps Jane after she collapses near Moor House. Disciplined, observant, and intensely devoted to religious duty, he lives with his sisters Diana and Mary and arranges useful work for Jane.

First appears in chapter 28

The elder of the two sisters who take Jane in at Moor House. Warm, quick-minded and independent, she becomes one of Jane's closest companions and encourages her through her recovery and her work at the village school.

First appears in chapter 28

The younger sister at Moor House, gentler and quieter than Diana but equally kind to Jane. Like her sister she works as a governess and shares the modest household that shelters Jane after her flight from Thornfield.