PROPHETIC IMAGINATION AND THE UNITY OF "JANE EYRE"
It has been common for critics of Jane Eyre to write of the novel's lack of unity, or of a unity achieved by rather artificial means. William Peden's assessment, while sympathetic on the whole, notes in typical fashion this apparent weakness of the work: "Few novels which have sur? vived the test of time contain as many defects as Jane Eyre. The sub? division of the novel into three loosely connected sequences is artificial. The plot is frequently over contrived. The engrafting of the Gothic elements upon an essentially realistic life story tends to destroy at times the illusion of vital reality which is the very foundation of the novel's success."1 It is easy, of course, to note the novel's structural simplicity. There are the three major sections, the Lowood, Thomfield, and Marsh End episodes, framed by the introductory Gateshead and the concluding Fern dean sections. As Mark Schorer says, "The structure of Jane Eyre is nearly artless."2 But to stop here is to miss an element of the novel which provides much of its reader fascination and underlying artistry. Though apparently simple in structure, the novel contains a quality of imagination and insight which borders on the visionary and prophetic, a quality pre? sented with sufficient subtlety to condition the reader's response almost imperceptibly. Yet, in retrospect, it may be seen that this visionary ele? ment has provided the coherence not immediately apparent in the surface structure of the novel.