Reply to "How Does Jane Survive?" - Megan

Jane Eyre is able to remain happy because she knows what she wants and is willing to go after it. Even from a young age, she knows that she "should indeed like to go to school" (Bronte 27) and when she gets there she wants and tries "to make so many friends, to earn respect, and win affection" (Bronte 89). When she tires of school and decides she wants "a new place, in a new house, amongst new faces, under new circumstances" (Bronte 116), she quickly pursues that by advertising as a governess. And when she receives a small fortune from her uncle, she is adamant that she will share it and forces St. John to "write to [his] sisters and tell them of the fortune that has accrued to them" (Bronte 547). In contrast, other characters in the book are either unaware of what they want or unwilling to pursue it. For example, St. John refuses to acknowledge that he loves Miss Oliver, even though Jane knows he "suffer[s] in the conflict" and is "wasting away" (Bronte 530) because of it.