“Life” by Charlotte Brontë encourages in the reader an attitude of hope and optimism towards life and its numerous trials and tribulations. Although she readily acknowledges that life has more than its fair share of ups and downs, Brontë believes that the various hurdles we encounter can be overcome if only we develop the right attitude.

To some, this may seem something of a complacent attitude. But Brontë wants us to focus on the bigger picture, as it were, to recognize the fleeting nature of all the many bad things that happen to us:

Sometimes there are clouds of gloom,
But these are transient all;
If the shower will make the roses bloom,
O why lament its fall?

As these lines indicate, the bad things in life will not only pass away eventually but will also generate good. Brontë uses the image of roses in relation to a shower of rain to illustrate her point. We wouldn't have all those nice pretty roses blooming if no rain ever fell. By the same token, the good will often come out of the bad. Under such circumstances, it's pointless to give in to gloom.

Each day is a trial, with all the potential difficulties that that entails. But Brontë believes that the best way of dealing with such problems is to face up to them with courage and fearlessness.