Archetypes In Charlotte Brontes Jane Eyre And Oedipus Rex

Archetype Essay An Archetype is a universal symbol with reoccurring representations in human culture. Archetypes are portrayed through symbols, themes, or characters that rise out of a universal pattern. The novel Jane Eyre and the play Oedipus Rex use the symbol of nature to give the reader a further understanding of the characters and the story. In Jane Eyre, Charlotte Bronte uses the archetypical symbol of nature in order to indirectly convey the feelings and future of Jane Eyre; similarly, this same archetype appears in Sophocles’ Oedipus Rex as well because nature expresses the appalling choices for which Oedipus has made. While these works use nature in the same way, both authors accomplish showing audiences the universal theme of†¦show more content†¦Bronte effectively uses the archetype of nature to furthermore portray Jane’s emotions and tell the audience how Jane truly feels in her current situation. Oedipus’ decisions are expressed through nat ure in the play, Oedipus Rex. When Oedipus becomes king and seeks the consultation of a priest, he is given the news that â€Å"the city is drowning† and â€Å"plague[s] attack† causing people to parish (Sophocles lines 23-27). The plague is a natural symbol of Oedipus’ sins for killing his father and wedding his mother. His sins are represented through the suffering of his town and people via the depleting natural resources. The town demands a solution to the crisis, and villagers bring their olive leaves to symbol their beacon of hope. The use of symbolism in this story plays an ironic role to reader. The reader learns about the wrong choices made by Oedipus through nature, but Oedipus doesn’t realize his choices, even though nature represents it, until the death of hid mother. The unknowing choice of marrying his mother indicates the natural connection between mother and child, and the marriage symbolizes the irony in his fate since his birth. The use of the Sphinx and its difficult riddle, which is consisted of animals (thus connecting to nature), symbolizes the wrong path for which Oedipus is heading, and when he gets the riddle correct, the Sphinx commits