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Like Jane Eyre, I've been seen as unconventional and abnormal. I'm autistic--is she too?
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-01-jane-eyre-ive-unconventional-abnormal.html(I was surprised to see this article in the Medical xPress blog but I thought it worthwhile passing along. I may need to go back to reread Jane Eyre with a fresh eye.)
Nearly 200 years since Charlotte Brontë published Jane Eyre, her unconventional orphan Jane--with her intense emotions and sense of injustice--continues to captivate and intrigue readers.
It's the story of a girl who rises above her social station by becoming the governess (later, wife) to her wealthy Byronic master, Edward Fairfax Rochester. Brontë's heroine "horrified the Victorians" with her "hunger, rebellion, and rage." Today, she is hailed as a feminist icon for those same qualities.
As an autistic woman, I have long felt a particular affinity for the character of Jane Eyre. Like Jane, I have been perceived as unconventional and abnormal. I, too, experienced a childhood of unintentional error, in which "I dared commit no fault: I strove to fulfill every duty." (Note: My pronouns are they/she. I use the term "woman" loosely to describe my experience as someone who has encountered womanhood, rather than a [completely] accurate descriptor of my gender.)
But despite my efforts, I frequently found myself getting into trouble. I would speak directly and honestly, causing offense without intention. I would ask clarifying questions which were perceived as personal attacks. I, too, was perceived as "naughty and tiresome." I often felt I was "not like other girls."
. . .
It's the story of a girl who rises above her social station by becoming the governess (later, wife) to her wealthy Byronic master, Edward Fairfax Rochester. Brontë's heroine "horrified the Victorians" with her "hunger, rebellion, and rage." Today, she is hailed as a feminist icon for those same qualities.
As an autistic woman, I have long felt a particular affinity for the character of Jane Eyre. Like Jane, I have been perceived as unconventional and abnormal. I, too, experienced a childhood of unintentional error, in which "I dared commit no fault: I strove to fulfill every duty." (Note: My pronouns are they/she. I use the term "woman" loosely to describe my experience as someone who has encountered womanhood, rather than a [completely] accurate descriptor of my gender.)
But despite my efforts, I frequently found myself getting into trouble. I would speak directly and honestly, causing offense without intention. I would ask clarifying questions which were perceived as personal attacks. I, too, was perceived as "naughty and tiresome." I often felt I was "not like other girls."
. . .