This exhibit explores the intertextual relationship of Brontë’s Jane Eyre and Rhys’s Wide Sargasso Sea by applying digital tools to critical themes shared between the novels. The texts share a cast, an emotive first-person narration, and vocal critique of the status quo yet are separated by a century. 

     Since its publication in 1847, Jane Eyre has been the subject of scrutiny. First, it was critiqued by Christians, later by feminists, and more recently by post-colonialists. The same can be said (sans Christians) of Wide Sargasso Sea - an intertextual novel acting as a prequel from Bertha Mason’s perspective. The novels have generated praise and derision that has maintained a dialogue for decades.

     Using text mining to examine critically identified themes of self-discovery, empire, and gender and marriage, this exhibit visualizes the divide in cultural perspective between the authors and how the literary discourse has evolved with our understanding of colonial violence. Examining the texts’ interactions with themes of empire, gender, and isolation. While Rhys’s work is closer to the modern consensus on colonialism, both novels are frozen in the cultural context in which they were written.