1. Jane Eyre: (pg. 8)
“Where the Northern Ocean, in vast whirls,
Boils round the naked, melancholy isles,
Of farthest Thule; and the Atlantic surge
Pours in among the stormy Hebridges.”
Bronte is describing the North Cape which her character, Jane Eyre, is reading about. According to the Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, Thule may be Iceland; Ancient Romans knew it as the most faraway known place to the north. Thule may be connected to “Gothic Tiule” which means the “most remote land.” Thule also may be connected to Greek “telos ”meaning “the end.” Bronte uses this reference to highlight the cold and bleak conditions that Jane grew up in (orphaned and living with an aunt that resented her) and that formed the basis for her childhood life and that influenced the way she thought and felt about relationships, religion, independence and what she thinks is right and wrong. Jane felt isolated and alone growing up and spends her life looking to belong but without giving up who she is.
E. Cobham Brewer 1810–1897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898. Great Books on Line. Bartleby.com: Great Books online. 2009. 25 November 2009. http://www.bartleby.com/81/16480.html
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so close -- can you be more specific in the "things" and perhaps describe/characterize that childhood life?
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