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Adèle Varens is Mr. Rochester’s eight-year-old French ward. She is a lively though somewhat spoiled child who lives at Thornfield. Adèle has two important functions in the novel. To begin with, her existence is the catalyst that first brings Jane to Thornfield, as Jane is hired to be the little girl’s governess. Further, Adèle is significant because she enables the reader to learn essential information about Mr. Rochester’s licentious past. Though Mr. Rochester provides for Adèle, he does not seem to care for her. He calls her unintelligent while she can overhear, he disdainfully remarks that “coquetry runs in her blood” (a strange remark to make about a young child), is unmoved whenever Adèle expresses any affection towards him, tells Jane that he often wishes to be rid of her, and constantly orders Adèle to keep quiet and stay out of the way. All of these interactions paint Adèle as a nuisance, a characterization contradicted by her true nature; it’s clear to Jane that she is a sweet child who inspires affection in those who meet her. Eventually, Mr. Rochester offers an explanation for his cold behavior: Adèle’s mother is Celine Varens, a French opera dancer with whom Mr. Rochester once had an affair. Celine claims that Mr. Rochester is Adèle’s father, but Mr. Rochester tells Jane that this is not the case. However, many scholars throughout the years have found this to be suspect and, instead, interpret the innocent Adèle as yet another ghost from Mr. Rochester’s past that he tries to keep from Jane.
