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A review by spyralnode
North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.75
This was extremely dull.
Readers rever Elizabeth Gaskell for being a quality classics writer, one that can be read today with as much joy as when it was first publish. But my experience was different, everything was so long winded, tedious, and a real pain to read. Plus, I am realising that the social novels of the England of the 1800s are just not my thing, as much as I liked them during my teenage years. The Jane Austen-esque style of people meeting at each other houses, chatting, gossiping and that's it doesn't do anything for me, in fact I find it lacking substance.
And that's exactly it, 'North and South' aims to be a romance as well as discuss social issues, such as labour and industrialisation, yet it does neither with sufficient consideration. The two characters are Margaret and Mr. Thornton (and don't get me started about how I feel with main characters named 'Mr.' something), coming from the South, respectively the North of England. They don't know each other's cultures, way of life, and will come together despite their differences.
Their interactions read passionless, I couldn't root for them at all, and I found them both boring, individually and together. I'm really not sure why we had them to follow, they didn't stand out in any way.
There was so much room in this story to add more reflection or challenge the reader when it comes to manual labour. Yet, it was fairly straightforward, missing a nuance and a discussion.
Yeah... disappointing.
Readers rever Elizabeth Gaskell for being a quality classics writer, one that can be read today with as much joy as when it was first publish. But my experience was different, everything was so long winded, tedious, and a real pain to read. Plus, I am realising that the social novels of the England of the 1800s are just not my thing, as much as I liked them during my teenage years. The Jane Austen-esque style of people meeting at each other houses, chatting, gossiping and that's it doesn't do anything for me, in fact I find it lacking substance.
And that's exactly it, 'North and South' aims to be a romance as well as discuss social issues, such as labour and industrialisation, yet it does neither with sufficient consideration. The two characters are Margaret and Mr. Thornton (and don't get me started about how I feel with main characters named 'Mr.' something), coming from the South, respectively the North of England. They don't know each other's cultures, way of life, and will come together despite their differences.
Their interactions read passionless, I couldn't root for them at all, and I found them both boring, individually and together. I'm really not sure why we had them to follow, they didn't stand out in any way.
There was so much room in this story to add more reflection or challenge the reader when it comes to manual labour. Yet, it was fairly straightforward, missing a nuance and a discussion.
Yeah... disappointing.