The Madwoman Revealed

Mr. Rochester, enraged and desperate, leads the wedding party to the third storey of Thornfield. He unlocks a hidden room and reveals his wife, Bertha Mason, a violent, insane woman cared for by Grace Poole. Rochester explains the history of his disastrous marriage, arranged by his father for money. He describes Bertha's madness and his years of suffering. He pleads with Jane to understand his position and to stay with him, even as his mistress. This revelation explains all the mysteries of Thornfield and places Jane in an impossible moral dilemma.