Thank you for visiting. I hope you will find the information insightful. ~ Dr. Jeanne Iris
Announcements:
I have demonstrated or will demonstrate the application of this theory at the following locations:
2023-25: I am writing my third book on iconic realism.
April 2022: American Conference for Irish Studies, virtual event: (This paper did not discuss Sydney Owenson.) "It’s in the Air: James Joyce’s Demonstration of Cognitive Dissonance through Iconic Realism in His Novel, Ulysses"
October, 2021: Sacred Heart University, Fairfield, CT: "Sydney Owenson’s use of sociolinguistics and iconic realism to defend marginalized communities in 19th century Ireland"
March, 2021: Lenoir-Rhyne University, Hickory, North Carolina: "Sydney Owenson (Lady Morgan): A Nineteenth Century Advocate for Positive Change through Creative Vision"
October, 2019: Elms College, Chicopee, Massachusetts: "A Declaration of Independence: Dissolving Sociolinguistic Borders in the Literature of Sydney Owenson (Lady Morgan)"
Jane Eyre and Iconic Realism
(Click HERE to view the final scene from this 2006 BBC production of Jane Eyre.)
Charlotte Brontë's novel, Jane Eyre, illustrates the theory of iconic realism in that her title character, Jane, depicts a young woman who, although abused as a child, manages to maintain her inner strength and dignity as she responsibly carries out her iconic role as an honest, humble governess while placed in the midst of wealth and deceit. Through this character, Brontë brings awareness to her audience of the complex emotions and intelligence within the feminine mindset. Stalwart Jane, the epitome of inner strength, becomes the lens through which her former master, blinded in a fire, ultimately perceives and strives to understand his world.