“Jane, be still; don't struggle so like a wild, frantic bird, that is rending its own plumage in its

desperation." "I am no bird; and no net ensnares me; I am a free human being, with an
independent will; which I now exert to leave you.”
― Charlotte Brontë , Jane Eyre

Do humans have free will? Or was it just a concept inculcated to us because we’re better
off believing in it? I’d like to believe the latter because it helps humans to arrive at a decision
that can either lead to good outcomes or lessons in life. Moreso, regardless of whether free will
exists, our society depends on everyone believing it does. The assigned quote to me is surely
very meaningful and I believe that the quote itself summarized the whole point of the story which
is about freedom to do things that the protagonist wants with the guidance of ethics and moral
principles.

The first part in the passage where the character said “Jane, be still; don't
struggle so like a wild, frantic bird, that is rending its own plumage in its desperation,” shows
how the character is suffering due to her actions. Based on my interpretation, the passage is all
about the pain by depicting how one wants to run away despite the feeling of pain and suffering
it may cause. The author compared the character’s pain to a struggling bird by describing how
the character, Jane, is the reason behind her pain just like how a bird needs to molt their own
old feathers into new ones. This depicts how the bird is responsible for its pain and so is the
character in the passage. The bird’s action as well as Jane’s is understandable for it does
happen in real life. Just like how different relationships work, where some become successful
and some aren’t. Some friendships that I have built-in my junior high school year are not the
same anymore for as we approach different paths, our bond and relationship got separated too.
These friendships are important to me but I also understand that no matter how much we love
our friends we have to let go of them eventually despite the pain because that is how life works.

As for the second part of the passage where the character replied, "I am no bird; and no
net ensnares me; I am a free human being, with an independent will; which I now exert to leave
you.” talks about the context of freedom based on my understanding. From the way I interpret
the line, I can say that it gives a strong emphasis on femininity and dignity. The character shows
a strong sense of her principles for she did not want her to be compared to an animal
particularly a bird whose freedom may banish anytime once it's captured. In the second part of
the sentence, freedom is a lot more emphasized by the character’s decision to leave. I see it as
a great implication about life where we are all entitled to do whatever we want, do the right
things even if it causes us great pain, and self-love by taking the initiative to let go of things
especially if it contributes to the deterioration of your inner peace.

In conclusion, the quote based on the book Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë reflects the
importance of free will and how it can be achieved by the use of moral principles. I divide the
part into two and from the way I interpret it, the first part shows how strong the character is by
the way she was compared to a molting bird and how they are both enduring pain while the
second part indicates having the free will to do what is right by leaving the love of her life and
prioritizing herself. I see the passage as a strong representation of a strong and complex
attitude by showing that the character is in charge of her own life and no one can affect her
decisions nor her freedom to leave the other character or I suppose the love of her life. Just like
what the great philosopher Aristotle said, “Freedom is obedience to self-formulated rules”. Doing
only what we believe is ethically and morally right especially when it comes to decision making
means genuine freedom.

References:

Cave, S. (2016). There’s No Such Thing As Free Will. Retrieved from

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2016/06/theres-no-such-thing-as-free-will/
480750/

Kraut, R. (2018). Aristotle's ethics: The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Summer 2018
Edition). Retrieved from
https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/sum2018/entries/aristotle-ethics/