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3.33 AVERAGE
3.33 AVERAGE
challenging
mysterious
tense
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:
No
The book started out as an entertaining Dickens straw man argument against Rationalism. It drags a bit in the middle but wraps up strong and would make a good antidote for Ayn Rand garbage.
I found it pretty hard to get into the story since it's generally pretty uninteresting, one of the better Victorian novels I've read though.
This book was okay. There were parts of it that were extremely difficult to understand. I wasn't really wowed by it but at least I can say I read it.
bounderby u suck also stephen deserved better and i ship sissy and louisa that’s all
Dickens was a political journalist, and Hard Times reads like an op-ed piece couched in a story. It's ironic that, while he's writing about the dangers of a world without imagination, Dickens has let his own story (and imagination) work as a slave to his ideas. Dickens' characters represent ideas more than people, and his plot serves the function of stating those ideas. In short, Dickens is didactic in Hard Times, and the book works as an allegory.
Still, reading this book in 2009 is appropriate. As I read about Coketown and the mess of industry, the hard times of laborers set against the arrogance and utilitarian ethics of the ruling class, I couldn't help but think of our own environmental mess, the bank crisis, and the backlash against the ruling class of our time. While the world has changed a bunch since 1854, the hard times of Dickens seem at least a little similar to our own hard times. I think this novel is a bit of good medicine for now (or at least good catharsis).
So I like you, Dickens. I like your description of the dusty, ugly city of industry. I like your overblown portrayal of the self-made capitalist with his backwards morals, banished mother, and child bride. I love your portrayal of the dog, and I like the reminder that, in hard times, we need the unreasonable things in life -- the stories, the myths, the metaphors. I like the reminder that, especially in hard times, this is what makes our walk toward death worthwhile -- the things that make no sense, the unspeakable, the mysterious and the ineffable.
Still, reading this book in 2009 is appropriate. As I read about Coketown and the mess of industry, the hard times of laborers set against the arrogance and utilitarian ethics of the ruling class, I couldn't help but think of our own environmental mess, the bank crisis, and the backlash against the ruling class of our time. While the world has changed a bunch since 1854, the hard times of Dickens seem at least a little similar to our own hard times. I think this novel is a bit of good medicine for now (or at least good catharsis).
So I like you, Dickens. I like your description of the dusty, ugly city of industry. I like your overblown portrayal of the self-made capitalist with his backwards morals, banished mother, and child bride. I love your portrayal of the dog, and I like the reminder that, in hard times, we need the unreasonable things in life -- the stories, the myths, the metaphors. I like the reminder that, especially in hard times, this is what makes our walk toward death worthwhile -- the things that make no sense, the unspeakable, the mysterious and the ineffable.
2020: moving this up a few stars. Such a nice Dickens. A nice combination of a lot of typical Dickens' elements with a less convoluted plot line.
This is one of his shorter works but he uses the length perfectly. I wish more of his books had been as concise as this one.
While it us definitely reminiscent of a lot of other Dickens' novels, it felt quite different as well to me and I feel like the characters were also given more depth than typical in hus works. There isn't always a ton of character development in his books but here we are definitely looking at characters spiraling or coming to terms with past mistakes. There were still some rote characters, but it felt like there was a lot more to these characters than in the past few Dickens' I've read.
This is one of his shorter works but he uses the length perfectly. I wish more of his books had been as concise as this one.
While it us definitely reminiscent of a lot of other Dickens' novels, it felt quite different as well to me and I feel like the characters were also given more depth than typical in hus works. There isn't always a ton of character development in his books but here we are definitely looking at characters spiraling or coming to terms with past mistakes. There were still some rote characters, but it felt like there was a lot more to these characters than in the past few Dickens' I've read.
To me this book in unexplainable. It is truly a masterpiece, and entirely worth reading. The final chapter is marvellous (do not skip ahead though, that is CHEATING!).
There are so many ways to read this book, and it is extremely layered. However, I think the most obvious reading is the facts vs. fancy idea. Where, naturally, a mix of the two are the ideal, as we see after a while.
Fantastic book! Read it!
There are so many ways to read this book, and it is extremely layered. However, I think the most obvious reading is the facts vs. fancy idea. Where, naturally, a mix of the two are the ideal, as we see after a while.
Fantastic book! Read it!
challenging
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes