After a year of marriage, Mrs. Edward Fairfax Rochester of Thornfield Hall becomes violently insane, after which her husband imprisons her on the third floor of their house. Years later, Rochester, purportedly a widower, engages young Jane Eyre as governess for his daughter Adele. While visiting Thornfield Hall, John Mason, Mrs. Rochester’s brother, sees that his sister is extremely agitated and learns that Rochester intends to marry Jane. As Jane and Rochester exchange vows, however, Mason, accompanied by a barrister, stops the ceremony. Shocked to find that Mrs. Rochester is alive, Jane leaves Thornfield Hall and is befriended by the Rev. St. John Rivers, who later proposes to her. Meanwhile, having learned of Rochester’s betrayal, his wife sets fire to their house. She perishes in the fire and Rochester is blinded while attempting to save her. Jane finds him stumbling toward a precipice. She then becomes his wife.