Blanche Ingram, portrayed by Imogen Poots, in Jane Eyre (2011) acts as the supposed romantic rival against that of Jane Eyre, for Edward Rochester’s affections. Blanche is a young and beautiful girl, dressed in fashionable attire and perfectly curled hair. It is insinuated though that she is shallow, especially when placed in comparison to that of Jane who is dressed rather plainly. As a minor character she acts as a tool to bring Jane and Rochester closer together but adding tension in the form of jealousy. Other minor characters fuel this fire by describing Blanche as a paragon of femininity, and that she would make Rochester a perfect match, always with the silent insinuation that it is because Blanche is not Jane. It is Janes assumption that Rochester and Blanche will be married that leads to the breaking point where Jane admits to her romantic feelings for her employer. As a minor character the filmmakers make use of changing perspectives to draw attention to both positive and negative aspects of Blanche. Will Straw in the “Introduction” to “The Small Parts, Small Players Dossier” discusses the roles that these minor characters play. Straw notes that we “… see the details of secondary performances as devices through which attention is redistributed in the film viewing experience” to draw the attention to “sharp-edged personalities of the bit player” (Straw 3). In her short amounts of scenes, she weaves in and out of being the focus, something that coincides with Rochester’s attentions and how Jane perceives them. When Jane is receiving Rochester’s attention Blanche fades off into the background. Here we see the façade of perfection fade as she casts harsh looks towards Jane. Her role in Jane Eyre comes to a sudden end when Jane, finally admitting her feelings, becomes engaged to Rochester. Afterwards neither her fate, nor character is mentioned. Though her role is small her presence and actions in the movie are what acts as the force that brings the two main characters together.
Works Cited
Jane Eyre. Directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga, performances by Mia Wasikowska, Michael Fassbender, and Imogen Poots, 2011.
Straw, Will. “Introduction.” Screen, vol. 52, no. 1, March 2011, pgs. 78 – 81. https://doi.org/10.1093/screen/hjq057
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