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A review by johnjfd
Jude the Obscure by Thomas Hardy
3.0
As he, himself, recognized, Hardy was certainly a man ahead of his time earning him such censure that he never wrote another novel after this one. His thorough and comprehensive challenges to the institution of marriage of the period are hard hitting. The institutions of the church and university hardly fair better to his narrative fusillade of ignominy.
Crushed by these institutions are the two beautiful protagonists who strive to do everything with kindness, uncharacteristic wisdom and love. Yet they are the victims of not only the souls crushing institutions of the time, but also of their self-destructive, uncontrollable urges.
Unfortunately, Hardy was also ahead of his time in writing victim porn. The unrelenting sadness and hopelessness of the book made it ultimately unreadable for me, and I gave up 3/4 of the way in and according to Wikipedia’s summary missed the most horrific parts.
\Hardy certainly gets credit for taking on the establishment in this archetype of naturalism, and he does include some humor, but oh the horror.
Crushed by these institutions are the two beautiful protagonists who strive to do everything with kindness, uncharacteristic wisdom and love. Yet they are the victims of not only the souls crushing institutions of the time, but also of their self-destructive, uncontrollable urges.
Unfortunately, Hardy was also ahead of his time in writing victim porn. The unrelenting sadness and hopelessness of the book made it ultimately unreadable for me, and I gave up 3/4 of the way in and according to Wikipedia’s summary missed the most horrific parts.
\Hardy certainly gets credit for taking on the establishment in this archetype of naturalism, and he does include some humor, but oh the horror.