Gentlemen in his station are not accustomed to marry their governesses.
Chapter 24
Context
Mrs. Fairfax warns Jane about the engagement by observing that gentlemen of Rochester's rank do not typically marry their governesses.
Analysis
The passive construction 'are not accustomed to marry' treats cross-class marriage as a breach of habit rather than law, locating the prohibition in custom and expectation rather than formal rule. This makes it simultaneously harder to refute (it is not illegal, so Rochester cannot simply override it) and more insidious (it is the collective judgment of a class, not an individual prejudice), revealing how class hierarchy operates through normalized practice rather than explicit decree.
Essay Tip
Support a thesis that Mrs. Fairfax represents the voice of social realism in the novel—her warnings are not personal cruelty but accurate observations about how class operates, and the novel's romantic plot can only succeed by willfully ignoring the structural truths she speaks.