In the 21st century, reading "Jane Eyre" is not only gratifying but even more so considering the era in which Charlotte Brontë wrote it. It is a story with a female character who has aged extremely well and remains intact to this day.
The story is told by the protagonist herself. It begins when she was a child living with her uncle's wife and her three children. She couldn't continue living there as she refused to be around people who didn't love her and treated her horribly. Then, she went to the Lowood institution for orphan girls, where poverty and mistreatment by a fanatical and hypocritical clergyman of the same religion abounded. Finally, at the age of eighteen, she became a governess and, by her own will, charted her path to Mr. Rochester's house, where the true plot will have room due to a dark secret waiting in Thornfield Hall.
Jane is a character who, from a young age, is shaping up to be someone active, eager to acquire knowledge and know more about the world. She is quite awake and passionate, but only in the moments when she finally manages to bring out all that she has inside. She is a girl who, for her time, could perfectly be rebellious, daring, argumentative, and much criticized and mistreated by family, acquaintances, and strangers. Considered a wild beast, a little demon, an incomprehensible being, and many more things. But that's precisely where her charm lies: stepping out of the canon imposed on every woman of that era. Jane Eyre has a strong and determined personality. She is not afraid to think and act differently from the conventional norm. She has truly conquered me with that firm and overwhelming spirit because she never, ever gives in. She always follows the path she desires with great tenacity. Despite having many falls and emotional peaks (because she also has her weaknesses like every human being) due to her physical appearance, her social class, or her condition as a governess, she always makes her own decisions, those that she considers correct for herself.
And that's what I'm completely sure of. Jane was the one who forged her own path, step by step, without following the trail that others wanted to mark for her. And believe me when I say that there were several men and women who tried to mold her, break her, make her believe that what they said was true, but fortunately and to my admiration, it was all in vain. Jane Eyre remained intact from beginning to end, faithful to her ideals and principles and not to those that society marked for her from a young age.
And yes, it is a much sweeter and healthier story than "Wuthering Heights," with a rather sentimental romance based on equality and the respect that the involved parties profess for each other, but not for that a perfect union. It is one of those relationships that touch your heart and that you want to happen as soon as possible because you can't stand the wait. And although it is not a reading as intense all the time and that generates ambivalent sensations like that of Emily Brontë, this shines with an exceptional protagonist. Ah, that's true, I've made it very obvious. Well, I'm sorry, I don't mind repeating myself until I'm tired because "Jane Eyre" captivated me and the magnificent journey that it represented to get to know her and recognize her as a free woman and owner of herself.