Original text:
1 month 19 in the morning, before five o'clock, Bessie came to my room with a candle and found that I had got up and almost combed it. I got up half an hour before she came in.
It was sinking for a month and a half, and the moonlight poured into the room from the narrow window beside the bed. I washed my face and got dressed by moonlight. On that day, I will leave Gateshead and get on the carriage that passes the courtyard gate at six o'clock in the morning. Only Bessie got up. She made a fire in the nursery and is cooking breakfast for me now.
The children are so excited about going out that they seldom have enough to eat, and so am I. Bessie urged me to eat some hot milk and bread prepared for me, but it was useless. She had to wrap some biscuits in paper and stuff them into my pocket.
Then she helped me to put on a long coat and a wide-brimmed hat and wrapped herself in a shawl. They left the nursery. When they passed Mrs. Reed's bedroom, she said, "Do you want to go in and say goodbye to your wife?"
"Come on, Bessie, when you went downstairs for dinner last night, she came to my bed and said I didn't have to disturb her or my cousins in the morning. She reminded me that she will always be my best friend, and I am grateful to her for talking about her like this in the future. "
"What did you say to her, Miss?"
"I didn't say anything, just covered my face with sheets and turned to face the wall."
"That's your fault, Miss Jane."
"I did the right thing, Bessie. Your wife has never been my friend, she is my enemy. "
"Miss Jane! Don't say that! "
"Goodbye Gateshead!" I said, I walked through the hall and out the front door.
The moon has sunk and the sky is dark. Bessie lit the lamp, which flashed on the freshly thawed wet steps and gravel roads. Winter mornings are wet and cold. I hurried along the driveway with my teeth gnawing and the lights on in the janitor's bedroom. When he got there, he saw his wife making a fire.
My suitcase was taken downstairs the night before, tied with a rope and put by the door. There are still a few minutes before six o'clock. Soon, the bell rang, and there was a clicking sound in the distance, announcing the arrival of the carriage. I walked to the door and watched the lights quickly break through the darkness and get closer and closer.
"Is she going alone?" Asked the janitor's wife.
"yes."
"How far is it from here?"
"Fifty miles."
"How far! It's strange that Mrs. Reed should let her go so far alone, and she's not worried at all. "
The carriage stopped at the gate, dragged by four horses, and the roof was full of passengers. The driver and the car attendant loudly urged me to get on the bus quickly. My suitcase was lifted up and I was dragged from Bessie's neck and taken away because I was kissing her neck.
"Take good care of her," Bessie said to the car attendant as he lifted me up and put me in the car.
"Yes, yes!" The man replied. The car door closed, "All right," and we were on our way. So I said goodbye to Bessie and Gateshead and was blown to a strange place that seemed distant and mysterious at that time like a gust of wind.
I don't really remember that trip. I only know that it was a strange day, as if I had walked hundreds of miles. We passed several towns and stopped at a big town.
The coachman unloaded the horse and let the passengers get off for dinner. I was taken to a guest house, and the car guard asked me to have some lunch, but I had no appetite. He left me in a huge room with a stove at both ends, a chandelier hanging from the ceiling, and a small red display window on the high wall filled with musical instruments.
I walked back and forth in the room for a long time, feeling very uncomfortable and afraid that someone would come in and kidnap me. I believe there are kidnappers, and their activities often appear in the stories told by Bessie Fire. The car guard finally came back, and I was stuffed into the carriage again. My protector got on the seat and sounded the horn in a muffled voice. The car jingled and passed the "Stone Street" in L Town.
In the afternoon, the weather is wet and foggy. When night fell, I began to feel really far away from Gateshead. We never passed the town again, and the scenery in the countryside changed. Gray mountains stand on the horizon. At dusk, the car drove into a valley where there was a dark forest. Long after the night covered all the scenery, I heard the strong wind whistling in the forest.
It sounded like a lullaby, and I finally fell asleep. Before long, the car suddenly stopped and I was awakened. The door of the carriage was open and a servant-like man stood by it. I can see her face and clothes clearly by the light.
"Is there a little girl named Jane Eyre?" She asked. I answered, said "yes", and was carried out, the box was unloaded, and then the carriage drove away at once.
I am stiff from sitting for a long time. The noise and vibration of the carriage made me stunned. I settled down and looked around. It's raining and windy, and it's dark all around. But I can vaguely see a wall and a door ahead. The new guide led me in, closed the door and locked it behind him.
At this time, you can see one room, maybe several rooms, because the building is very open, with many windows and some lights on. We set foot on a wide stone road splashed with water and then entered a door. Then the servant took me through an aisle, walked into a room with a fire and left me.
I stood and dried my frozen fingers on the fire. I looked around, there were no candles in the room, and the flickering flames in the fireplace occasionally reflected wallpaper walls, carpets, curtains and shiny mahogany furniture. This is a living room. Although it is not as spacious and gorgeous as Gateshead, it is very comfortable.
I was puzzled to guess the meaning of a picture on the wall when the door opened and a man came in with a lamp in his hand, followed by another man.
The first person who entered the door was a tall woman with black hair, black eyes and big white forehead. She was half wrapped in a shawl, serious and straight.
"The child is too young to come alone," she said, putting the candle on the table, studying me carefully for a minute or two, and then adding.
"Let's hurry to send her to bed. She looks tired. Are you tired? " She asked, putting her hand on my shoulder.
"A little tired, madam."
"Of course, also hungry. Miss Miller, let her have some dinner before going to bed. My little girl, is this the first time you left your parents to go to school? "
I explained to her that I had no parents. She asked me how long they had been dead, how old I was, what my name was, and whether I could read, write and sew a little. Then she touched my cheek with her index finger and said, I hope I am a good boy. Then she sent me away with Miss Miller.
The young lady who just left is about twenty-nine, and the one who walked with me is a few years younger than her. I was deeply impressed by the tone, eyes and manner of the former, while Miss Miller was plain and weak, but her face was still rosy. Her gait and movements are in a hurry, as if she always has something at hand.
Seriously, I look like a teaching assistant. It turned out to be true. I was taken to an irregular building by her, passing through room after room and aisle after aisle. These places are so quiet, even a little sad.
Later, we suddenly heard a buzzing sound. In an instant, we entered a wide and long room with two big wooden tables at each end. Two candles are lit on each table, and a group of girls aged between nine, ten and twenty are sitting on the benches around the table.
In the dim candlelight, I feel that they seem to be countless, although in fact there will not be more than 80 people. They were all wearing strange wool tops and linen bibs. It's study time, and they are busy memorizing the lessons for the next day. The buzz I heard was the result of reading aloud in a low voice.
Miss Miller motioned for me to sit on the bench by the door, then walked to the end of the long room and shouted:
"Monitor, put your books away and put them aside!"
Four tall girls stood up from each table and took turns to put away the books. Miss Miller gave the order again.
"Monitor, get the plate!"
The tall girl has gone out and will be back soon. Each of them brought a big plate with something in it, with a big pot of water and a big cup in the middle. Everything was distributed, and everyone who was happy to drink water drank saliva. This cup is very ordinary.
When it was my turn, I drank some water because I was thirsty, but I didn't touch the food. Excitement and fatigue made me lose my appetite. But after I finished eating, Miss Miller said a prayer, and the whole class filed out and went up the stairs in pairs. By this time, I was exhausted, and I hardly noticed the appearance of the dormitory, only seeing the length of a classroom.
I'll share a bed with Miss Miller tonight. She helped me undress and let me lie down. At this moment, I glanced at a long row of beds. Two people soon slept in their own beds. Ten minutes later, the only light went out. I fell asleep in the silence and darkness.
Source: Jane Eyre, a novel by British woman writer Charlotte Brontexq.
Extended data:
Creative background:
When Charlotte Brontexq wrote Jane Eyre, Britain was already the largest industrial country in the world, but the status of British women has not changed, and they are still in a subordinate and dependent position. Women's survival goal is to marry into a rich family, even if they can't be born into a rich family, they should strive to gain wealth and status through marriage. The only choice for women's career is to be a good wife and mother.
As a writer, women will be regarded as violating their due femininity and will be violently attacked by men. From the beginning of Charlotte sisters' works using masculine pseudonyms, we can imagine the dilemma faced by female writers at that time. Jane Eyre was written under this passive background.