“I am tired, sir.”
Chapter 17
He looked at me for a minute.
“And a little depressed,” he said. “What about? Tell me.”
“Nothing – nothing, sir. I am not depressed.”
“But I affirm that you are: so much so that a few more words would bring tears to your eyes – indeed, they are there now, shining and swimming; and a bead has slipped from the lash and falled to the flag. If I had time, and was not in mortal dread of some parting prig of a servant passing, I would know what all this means. Well, to-night I excuse you; but understand that so long as my visitors stay, I expect you to appear in the drawing-room every evening; it is my wish; don’t neglect it. Now go, and send Sophie for Adele. Good-night my-” he stopped, bit his lip, and abruptly left me.
Jane has been thrown into High Society, from which she had been denied as a child. She’s working for Mr. Rochester, and the experience of this type of socialization in high society is very draining on her and difficult for her to keep up with. This quote specifically was said after Jane left the drawing room – more specifically leaving Mr. Rochester’s guests – after hiding in a corner for the majority of her time there. A lot of this chapter was Jane listening in to the gossip, hoping Mr. Rochester wouldn’t see her hiding away from the socialization, as she looks for a way out. When she’s finally able to actually leave, and Mr. Rochester corners her, he notices Jane’s sadness and depression, even though she denies that she is.
This whole experience is still very foreign to Jane, and she’s completely uncomfortable in the situation she was put into. From her childhood of being hidden away by her family and bullied by her cousins, she never really had much socialization until she got to school. Even then, she mostly preferred to be alone.
I like this quote a lot, though, in comparison to others. It shows the growing closeness between Jane and Mr. Rochester, and it also shows a great amount of care for Jane on Mr. Rochester’s part, while also navigating around social proprieties. Especially the end, where the man is about to slip and likely call Jane some term of endearment, before catching himself before he can speak it into the world and walking away. I feel this quote is amazing at showing a sort of push/pull relationship that Jane and Mr. Rochester are forming.
