How we cite our quotes: Citations follow this format: (Volume.Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #10
His form was of the same strong and stalwart contour as ever: his port was still erect, his hair was still raven-black; nor were his features altered or sunk: not in one year’s space, by any sorrow, could his athletic strength be quelled, or his vigorous prime blighted. But in his countenance, I saw a change: that looked desperate and brooding —that reminded me of some wronged and fettered wild beast or bird, dangerous to approach in his sullen woe. The caged eagle, whose gold-ringed eyes cruelty has extinguished, might look as looked that sightless Samson. (3.11.9)
English teachers are always going on about how characters change—you know, what do they learn, how do they grow, that kind of thing. Rochester’s change is personal and emotional, of course, but it’s also physical; you can see in his face that he really understands his (attempted) crime—and also that he’s pretty much lost all hope.
Being able to read information in people’s faces accurately just by looking at them is something that happens a lot in this novel (and that depends on a nineteenth-century pseudo-science called "phrenology"—think of it as a palm-reading for your forehead). For more on the reference to Samson, check out our "Allusions" section.