The similarities between Lady Edith Crawley and Jane Eyre are quite remarkable as the plot of Downton goes forward. Aside from the fact that Edith isn't a nanny (but she did get a job which is similar to Jane in the fact that many women didn't work), here are a few examples of where they line up.
1) Considered to be plain (but really isn't)
2) Has to be the sensible one
3) Not a social butterfly
4) Bit of a brooder
5) Feels the need to take on life's challenges by herself without outside help
6) Resident of England who likes the great outdoors
7) Falls in love with men much older than herself
8) Falls in love with a man who has a mentally unstable wife
9) Sleeps through fires that engulf her room (shares that with Thornton, not Jane Eyre)
Spoiler alert: After Jane nearly kills herself fleeing across the moors when she learns her fiancee is still married to a previous woman, her fiancee's estate burns down (thanks to his unhinged spouse), his wife dies in an accident, she becomes independently rich, she finds family that loves her, and she marries her Thornton.
"Reader, I married him" is the famous line written by Charlotte Bronte. Perhaps poor Edith can catch a break.
