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3.33 AVERAGE
3.33 AVERAGE
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
4.35⭐️s
This book very obviously fits into the Victorian “social problem” genre; Dickens tries very little to conceal his personal notions in this book. Most characters are rather exaggerated and 2D but they serve the purpose of propelling Dickens’ arguments. However, I really enjoyed reading this. I’ve been converted to a die-hard Charles Dickens lover (his writing, not the man personally).
The way he writes is so entertaining and witty. While reading Dickens, I often find myself laughing out loud (he’s such a cheeky little lad). At times I struggled with reading dialogue from characters with heavier accents (like Stephen Blackpool) but it wasn't too difficult to decipher and very few characters speak with heavy accents.
The most prevalent themes are the tension between Fact and Fancy, the industrialization of society (both externally and internally), and discussion of class (a classic Dickens commentary subject); interesting stuff.
Idk man, I could talk about this book for hours but I won't. Overall: I am obsessed with Dickens’ writing and am excited to read more.
This book very obviously fits into the Victorian “social problem” genre; Dickens tries very little to conceal his personal notions in this book. Most characters are rather exaggerated and 2D but they serve the purpose of propelling Dickens’ arguments. However, I really enjoyed reading this. I’ve been converted to a die-hard Charles Dickens lover (his writing, not the man personally).
The way he writes is so entertaining and witty. While reading Dickens, I often find myself laughing out loud (he’s such a cheeky little lad). At times I struggled with reading dialogue from characters with heavier accents (like Stephen Blackpool) but it wasn't too difficult to decipher and very few characters speak with heavy accents.
The most prevalent themes are the tension between Fact and Fancy, the industrialization of society (both externally and internally), and discussion of class (a classic Dickens commentary subject); interesting stuff.
Idk man, I could talk about this book for hours but I won't. Overall: I am obsessed with Dickens’ writing and am excited to read more.
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Dickens writing is always eerily applicable to modern problems. The main theme is whether logic or fancy (emotions) lead to a fulfilled life. I couldn't help but draw the comparison to today's culture wars throughout. Half the characters miserably shouting fact and logic (or just following it because thats all they know) versus the societal outcasts who rely on emotion and connection to each other to survive. There's also some interesting things the book has to say on class and a womans place in the world. Ultimately I think the focus is on the way both trusting only facts and following only your fancy can be selfish. The only character who ends up happy is the one who has a clear sense of duty and how she feels. Aka a functional society needs to have stucture and compassion.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Toxic relationship, Abandonment, Classism
Minor: Infidelity
Abusive teachers (verbal and physical), Abusive parents (emotional)
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
Some persons hold, that there is a wisdom of the Head, and that there is a wisdom of the heart.
People must be amused.....they can't be always working, nor yet they can be always a learning.
I have a complicated relationships with Dickens' novels. On one hand, I love the way he winds his sentences to say the simplest thing in a very clever way. On the other hand, I hate that the guy seems incapable of writing a straight sentence and that his character talk on and on... I don't have the attention span to read and understand a sentence that goes around in circles for 10 fucking lines! That said, and as frustrating as it was to be reading this book at times, there are some things I really liked.
Hard Times, for those who don't know, is set in Coketown in the highly utilitarians times of 19th century England. The characters, very deliberately, have been constructed as caricatures, representations, of certain types of people of the time.
There's Thomas Gradgrind, a father of four who cares only for Facts and has raised his children to deal with nothing else. There's his eldest daughter, Louisa, who is conflicted by her emotions, the mere presence of them, because she was never taught to understand them. There's his son Tom, who has grown to resent his father for the life he was given. There's Josiah Bounderby, a capitalist factory owner (and utter bastard) who sees his employees as nothing more than Hands, without individuality. There's Stephen Blackpool, one such hand who only wants a simple and satisfying life. And finally, we've got Sissy Jupe, the daughter of a circus entertainer who, due to circumstances, comes to live with Thomas Gradgrind.
A lot of characters, I know. And there are still a few others I haven't mentioned. And they all have a role to play. Their lives are entwined. And they all come together in this setting to paint a very pessimistic picture of the life in this town. Which was what Dickens wanted to do. But it can get a little to dim when nothing good seems to happen to anyone and all the good guys lose.
Also, reading a pretty bleak book with a lot of characters, but none I particularly cared for, was not my idea of fun. Also, in an attempt to show the flaw of Thomas Gradgrind's philosophy of 'Facts, Facts, Facts', Dickens may have favoured the opposite too much as we see people like Sissy or Stephen or Rachel as the only ones who are truly wise about the world. Also, sometimes an overly rational nature, or lack thereof, is more about personality than upbringing. And there's nothing wrong with either. The world needs all kinds of people, after all.
Overall, this was a decent read that took me forever to get through. And I can see why some might adore it while others would find it unbearably dull. It's not for everyone, but it's still worth a try.
Hard Times, for those who don't know, is set in Coketown in the highly utilitarians times of 19th century England. The characters, very deliberately, have been constructed as caricatures, representations, of certain types of people of the time.
There's Thomas Gradgrind, a father of four who cares only for Facts and has raised his children to deal with nothing else. There's his eldest daughter, Louisa, who is conflicted by her emotions, the mere presence of them, because she was never taught to understand them. There's his son Tom, who has grown to resent his father for the life he was given. There's Josiah Bounderby, a capitalist factory owner (and utter bastard) who sees his employees as nothing more than Hands, without individuality. There's Stephen Blackpool, one such hand who only wants a simple and satisfying life. And finally, we've got Sissy Jupe, the daughter of a circus entertainer who, due to circumstances, comes to live with Thomas Gradgrind.
A lot of characters, I know. And there are still a few others I haven't mentioned. And they all have a role to play. Their lives are entwined. And they all come together in this setting to paint a very pessimistic picture of the life in this town. Which was what Dickens wanted to do. But it can get a little to dim when nothing good seems to happen to anyone and all the good guys lose.
Also, reading a pretty bleak book with a lot of characters, but none I particularly cared for, was not my idea of fun. Also, in an attempt to show the flaw of Thomas Gradgrind's philosophy of 'Facts, Facts, Facts', Dickens may have favoured the opposite too much as we see people like Sissy or Stephen or Rachel as the only ones who are truly wise about the world. Also, sometimes an overly rational nature, or lack thereof, is more about personality than upbringing. And there's nothing wrong with either. The world needs all kinds of people, after all.
Overall, this was a decent read that took me forever to get through. And I can see why some might adore it while others would find it unbearably dull. It's not for everyone, but it's still worth a try.
[Read for IB English] I took a star off because there were some parts that bored me but the ending was so unexpected and I enjoyed it - 4/5 stars