In this domestic fiction or "marriage plot" novel, Brontë tells the story of how Jane Eyre, an orphan and victim of familial abuse becomes a governess and eventually a wife to the wealthy Rochester. This journey enacts several ideologies of the 19th-century emerging middle class, including the importance of internal qualities, individualism, and adherence to strict conceptions of morality. Within the text, there are also implicit references to race and imperialism, particularly represented by the character Bertha, the "creole" first wife that Rochester hides in his attic.