Most people would have termed her a splendid woman of her age: and so she was, no doubt, physically speaking; but then there was an expression of almost insupportable haughtiness in her bearing and countenance.
Chapter 17 · Narrator
Context
Jane describes the Dowager Lady Ingram, Blanche's mother, noting her physical impressiveness but also the overwhelming pride visible in her expression and posture.
Analysis
The structure—'Most people would... but'—sets up a contrast between public judgment and Jane's private dissent. By granting the Dowager her 'splendid' physicality before the adversative 'but,' Jane acknowledges surface reality while asserting that moral ugliness ('insupportable haughtiness') matters more. The qualification 'physically speaking' is cutting: it limits the compliment so severely that it becomes a condemnation. Jane refuses to let beauty erase cruelty, insisting that character, not appearance, is the true measure.
Essay Tip
Support a thesis that Jane's judgments are guided by an ethical rather than aesthetic standard—she consistently refuses to conflate beauty with worth, a stance that allows her to see through the allure of wealth and rank to the moral failures beneath.