Chapter XVII Practice Quiz — Jane Eyre
by Charlotte Bronte — tap or click to flip
Practice Quiz: Chapter XVII
How long has Mr. Rochester been absent from Thornfield when Chapter XVII opens?
He has been absent for more than a fortnight (over two weeks). Jane first notes a week, then ten days, and he is gone upwards of a fortnight before Mrs. Fairfax receives his letter.
What news does Mrs. Fairfax receive in the letter from Mr. Rochester?
He is returning to Thornfield in three days (on Thursday) and bringing a large party of guests. She is to prepare the best bedrooms and hire extra kitchen hands from the George Inn at Millcote.
Who rides at Mr. Rochester's side when the party arrives at Thornfield?
Miss Blanche Ingram, wearing a purple riding-habit with raven ringlets streaming through her veil.
How does Jane manage to feed herself, Adele, and Sophie on the night the guests arrive?
Jane sneaks down the back stairs to the kitchen, takes a cold chicken, bread, tarts, and plates from the larder, and carries this "booty" back to the schoolroom.
Why does Rochester command Jane to appear in the drawing room each evening?
He says it is his "particular wish" and threatens to come fetch her himself "in case of contumacy" (stubborn resistance). He wants her present while his guests stay.
What does Rochester almost say to Jane at the end of the chapter?
He begins to say "Good-night, my--" but stops, bites his lip, and abruptly leaves, seemingly catching himself before completing an endearment like "my love" or "my darling."
How does Jane describe Blanche Ingram's appearance?
Blanche is tall as a poplar, moulded like a Dian (Diana), with a noble bust, sloping shoulders, graceful neck, dark eyes, and black ringlets. Her face has the same pride as her mother's, with a low brow and high features.
How does Blanche Ingram differ from her sister Mary?
Blanche is self-conscious, satirical, and lively with a haughty lip, while Mary has a milder, more open countenance but lacks expression and life—she sits "fixed like a statue in its niche" and has little to say.
How does Jane describe the Dowager Lady Ingram?
She is between forty and fifty, still fine in shape with black hair and perfect teeth, but with an expression of "almost insupportable haughtiness," Roman features, a double chin, a fierce hard eye reminiscent of Mrs. Reed's, and a pompous, dogmatical voice.
What do the Ingrams say about governesses during the drawing-room scene?
Lady Ingram calls them a source of "martyrdom" due to "incompetency and caprice." Blanche calls them "a nuisance" and "incubi," then boasts of the tricks she played on her governesses, including driving Madame Joubert to "raging passions."
Which guest does Jane describe most favorably among the ladies?
Mrs. Colonel Dent, whom Jane finds "more lady-like" than the others, with a slight figure, pale gentle face, and fair hair. Jane also appreciates her black satin dress and pearl ornaments over Lady Lynn's showy display.
What metaphor does Jane use to describe the pleasure and pain of watching Rochester?
She compares it to a thirst-perishing man who knows the well is poisoned yet "stoops and drinks divine draughts nevertheless"—a pleasure that is "pure gold, with a steely point of agony."
What phrase does Jane use to express her sense of kinship with Rochester despite their class difference?
"I have something in my brain and heart, in my blood and nerves, that assimilates me mentally to him." She believes they share tastes and feelings even though "rank and wealth sever us widely."
How does the chapter address the social position of governesses in Victorian England?
Jane occupies a painful middle ground—too educated for servants, too poor for the drawing room. She hides behind curtains, observes from dark corridors, and is insulted by guests who call governesses "incubi" and claim to see "all the faults of her class" in Jane's face.
What stern self-lecture does Jane deliver to herself about her feelings during Rochester's absence?
She tells herself: "He is not of your order: keep to your caste, and be too self-respecting to lavish the love of the whole heart, soul, and strength, where such a gift is not wanted and would be despised."
What notable narrative technique does Bronte use during the drawing-room scene?
She shifts from past tense to present tense ("At last coffee is brought in, and the gentlemen are summoned"), giving the scene vivid immediacy and reflecting Jane's heightened emotional state.
What is the dramatic irony in Rochester's truncated "Good-night, my—"?
The reader can infer Rochester was about to use an endearment ("my love" or "my darling"), revealing his feelings, while Jane remains uncertain about what he meant. This creates dramatic irony because the reader knows more than the character.
How does Bronte use Blanche Ingram as a literary foil to Jane?
Blanche is tall, dark, wealthy, accomplished, and aristocratic where Jane is small, plain, poor, and of low social rank. But Blanche's vanity and cruelty contrast with Jane's depth and integrity, ultimately showing that inner worth surpasses outward beauty.
What information about Grace Poole deepens the mystery of Thornfield in this chapter?
Jane learns Grace earns five times more than other servants, banks her savings quarterly, and occupies the locked third storey. When servants begin discussing "the master" in relation to Grace, they are silenced upon noticing Jane—confirming she is excluded from a secret.
What is the significance of Jane's phrase "beauty is in the eye of the gazer"?
It redefines beauty as subjective and emotionally determined rather than conventional. Rochester is not handsome by society's standards, but to Jane his features are "more than beautiful" because they are "full of an interest, an influence that quite mastered me."