'Anita and Me' and 'Jane Eyre' are novels that display the spiritual and emotional growth of the heroine. In this essay I will compare the childhood of Menna and Jane, listing the similarities and difference of their early years.
             Both books are about a young girl (about ten years old) and they feel as if they are not accepted by their friend, family and the everyday people around them. Jane Eyre and Meena both have strong options about unjustness and have wild imaginations that lead them to trouble. Some of the most noticeable differences between Jane Eyre and Meena are that they come from different cultures and come from different centuries.
             The book 'Jane Eyre' was written and set in 1847 and was a best seller in the early Victorian period. At this time women had a very inferior status to men, which allowed Jane to take her form of female independence. It is quickly shown in the book that Jane has a strong personally because she refuses to be dominated by her elder cousin, John. The punishment that her aunt gives her is seen as, 'Unjust! Unjust!' and this shows that she can recognise a situation and judge it honestly with her own opinion. When Jane is locked in the Red room she begins to panic about superstitions of a ghost, "My heart beat thick, my head grew hot: a sound filled my ears, which I denned the rushing of wings; something was near me." This clearly shows that Jane has wild imitation and is gullible, much similar to Menna when she was told about the witch in the big house.
             IN 1847 most people were religious. Jane Eyre was a Christian and was brought up as one, although her faith was questioned when her friend Helen dies, "You are sure, then, Helen that our souls can get to Heaven when we die?"
             Meena was not brought up with a strict religion as Jane. Her mother was a Silk and her father was Punjabi so not set rules were applied as she grew up. Meena
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