Rochester's attempt at redemption--Kristi Ayres

                It is very evident that both Jane and Rochester are far from perfect characters, yet somehow they are both able to look past each other's flaws and have a happy life together.  Jane is a superstitious and seems to be pretty lifeless for most parts in the book while Rochester has many secrets and had attempted to manipulate Jane into marrying him illegally.  These are all major flaws that these characters possess and from an outsider's perspective, I had interpreted Jane as almost a victim to Rochester's games.  Whether it was because the story was told from Jane's perspective or because I really fell in love with Jane's character, I expect her to be with a nearly perfect man who can balance her out and push her to be the best that she can be.  Rochester does not seem to fit this image I have created for who I would like Jane's husband to be.  However, this is the man that Jane has fallen in love with, therefore I feel obligated to support this.  I want Jane to be happy and for some reason Rochester seems to complete her and give her the life she had always desired for herself.  Even before the revealing of Bertha, there was nothing particularly special about Rochester that would compelled me to be a huge fan of his character, and then once it was known he had been lying to Jane, he even became less appealing to me.  Despite these horrible things that Rochester has put Jane through, her heart was always pointed towards him.  It is admirable that Rochester was never violent with Bertha, and I believe that this is portrayed even better in the 1943 film adaption, because Bertha is rarely shown and the director really emphasized the heroism and injuries that Rochester faced in the story which could provide sympathy for Rochester.  Rochester has definitely gained sympathy from me towards the end because he was trying to do the right thing, and he suffered from this courageous decision by losing his hand and eye sight.  Now Rochester has obtained physical flaws that were a result of saving the one thing he was trying to hide from the world that caused Jane to leave in the first place.  Jane is also to look past these flaws and recognize her deep love for him.  As a reader who cares deeply for Jane, I feel as though I need to side with her and root for their love together and say that he has redeemed himself, but for a lie that huge, it is hard to say that he has proven that he is trust-worthy.