Now that Jane has accepted Rochester's proposal, he seems intent on transforming her into the ideal object of affection. Already that morning, he has sent to London to have the family jewels sent to Thornfield for Jane, and he wants her to wear satin, lace, and priceless veils. Jane worries she'll lose herself if "tricked out" in these "stage-trappings." Not only does he want to make Jane a "beauty," Rochester also wants her to be his "angel" and "comforter." Jane reminds him that she simply wants to be herself, not some "celestial" being. A flaw has become apparent in Rochester's approach to love. While he claims to dislike fortune-hunting women, such as Céline Varens or Blanche Ingram, he seems to be trying to turn Jane into one of them. In fact, she argues that if she accepted his demands, he would soon grow tired of her. As "performing ape," Jane would be no better than a kept woman, an elegantly clothed object performing for her master. Instead, Jane wants to maintain both her personality and her independence. What Rochester values in Jane is her pliancy, which allows him to shape her into the woman he desires, something that wouldn't have been possible with a powerful woman like Blanche. Rochester still has much to learn about love.
Allusions to fairy tales continue in this chapter. Rochester tells Adèle that Jane is the fairy from Elf-land whose errand is to make him happy. This fantasy reminds the reader that one of Rochester's primary hopes from this marriage is that it will somehow purify him: For example, he wants to revisit all of his old haunts in Europe, tracing all of his old steps, but now "healed and cleansed" by his angelic Jane. By recreating her as fairy or angel, Rochester fulfills his own fantasy of magically erasing his past transgressions and beginning a fresh, new life.
