How did Samuel Richardson’s Pamela influence Jane Eyre?

In the context of Charlotte Brontë’s work, the influence of Samuel Richardson’s novel Pamela on Jane Eyre is primarily associated with the "Cinderella" theme.1

While Brontë’s novel is a distinct work of moral realism and Gothic elements, scholars suggest that the narrative arc of a young, vulnerable woman navigating hardship and social standing may draw inspiration from Richardson’s story of a servant girl’s struggle and eventual reward. In Jane Eyre, this thematic influence is integrated into a broader exploration of love, independence, and forgiveness. Unlike Richardson’s epistolary novel, which relies on letters to capture a character's immediate consciousness, Brontë’s Jane Eyre is presented as a first-person autobiography that emphasizes the protagonist's internal moral conviction and her development as a thinking, feeling woman.2134