Jude the Obscure (Modern Library Classics)

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Jude the Obscure (Modern Library Classics)

by Thomas Hardy, Rosellen Brown (Introduction)

3.74 · rating details · 13,652 ratings · 1,008 reviews

In 1895 Hardy's final novel, the great tale of Jude The Obscure, sent shockwaves of indignation rolling across Victorian England. Hardy had dared to write frankly about sexuality and to indict the institutions of marriage, education, and religion. But he had, in fact, created a deeply moral work. The stonemason Jude Fawley is a dreamer; his is a tragedy of unfulfilled aims...more

Paperback, 452 pages

Published August 14th 2001 by Modern Library (first published 1895)

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Nov 12, 2009

karen rated it

Shelves: littry-fiction, favorites

jude the obscure is one of my favorite books of all time. and reading the biography of him now is making me very antsy to reread this. it used to be part of my "summer reruns" ritual; to reread all my favorites each and every summer. then i got old and realized that kind of thing was a luxury i would have to give up, or risk missing out on all kinds of books that are currently crowding my shelves and toppling over on my floor. jude the obscure was introduced to me at the tender age of ...more

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Jan 22, 2011

Eric rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: people who feel better when they compare their life to Jude's.

Shelves: literature

If you like sunshine, unicorns, and lollipops, then you probably won't like this book. If it's raining and you're vaguely manic depressive or if you just want to sit around for a few hours and feel sorry for someone other than yourself - well, Jude's your man.

I can't fault Hardy's talents at controlling the mood. Even before it became horrendously horrendous, there was a pall of doom that hung over everything that poor Jude touched.

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Jul 21, 2008

Martine rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: people in need of some good old-fashioned tragedy

Shelves: british, film, nineteenth-century, psychological-drama

If it weren't for the fact that it's somewhat whiny and depressing (and that's putting it mildly), Jude the Obscure would be an ideal book for secondary school pupils struggling with their book reports. See, the way Hardy wrote the novel, the reader is not required to think for himself about what the characters are like and why they suffer the misfortunes they do. Hardy spells it all out for him, mostly by having the characters analysing themselves and each other ad nauseam. Thus the reader is t...moreIf it weren't for the fact that it's somewhat whiny and depressing (and that's putting it mildly), Jude the Obscure would be an ideal book for secondary school pupils struggling with their book reports. See, the way Hardy wrote the novel, the reader is not required to think for himself about what the characters are like and why they suffer the misfortunes they do. Hardy spells it all out for him, mostly by having the characters analysing themselves and each other ad nauseam. Thus the reader is told that the ambitious stone mason Jude is a 'purblind, simple creature' whose scandalous relationship with his free-spirited cousin Sure is doomed to fail because Sue is an 'ethereal, fine-nerved, sensitive girl, quite unfitted by temperament and instinct to fulfil the conditions of the matrimonial relation ... possibly with scarce any man' (subtle foreshadowing, that) and who, for all her modern ideas, doesn't 'have the courage of [her] views', as she helpfully informs Jude (and the reader) in one of the many dialogues in which her character is discussed at length. Hardy spends so much time spelling out his protagonists' psychological quirks (usually in the form of dialogue) that it borders on the absurd. As a lazy twenty-something reader, I loved this tendency of his (it even struck me as very good characterisation), but when I reread the book last weekend, I wanted to find myself a time machine, head for 1893 and hand Hardy the OED page on which the concept of subtlety is explained, as well as a plaque reminding him to 'Show, Don't Tell', to be put over his writing desk and memorised afresh before each new chapter. Seriously. The characterisation is that overblown.

Hardy's tendency to beat his reader over the head with psychological insights is not the only thing about Jude the Obscure which would make a modern creative writing teacher reach for his red pen. The author also makes the mistake of adding a child to the story who talks and behaves as no other child has ever been known to. His unlikely inclusion and the even more unlikely resolution to his storyline are so preposterously overdramatic and sentimental that they ruin what could have been a very good story despite all its flaws. For make no mistake, there's a good story hidden in there somewhere. There's some genuine tragedy in this tale about a man who keeps making the same mistakes, a woman who is emotionally incapable of love, and a cruel society which will neither allow them to make their dreams come true nor condone any impropriety. As an indictment of Victorian marriage laws and social intolerance, Jude the Obscure is quite effective (it caused an outrage on its initial publication, and understandably so; one can only wonder what the irate Victorian audience would have made of the uncensored draft of the book, which contained even more offensive scenes). As a requiem to dreams, an exploration of happiness versus duty and a lesson not to get side-tracked from one's dreams by false sentiments, it's a powerful read -- or so it would be if it weren't for Hardy's penchant for histrionics and unsubtle characterisation. Pity he didn't have a modern creative writing teacher to teach him the ropes. For all his talent, he really could have done with one here.(less)

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Mar 04, 2011

Mariel rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: Should I take that risk or just smile?

Recommended to Mariel by: misread

Shelves: rubber-ring, babywecouldbefamous

It has been a long time since I have read Jude the Obscure. I was fourteen or fifteen (ninth grade of high school age, either way). I'm thirty-one as of this writing. I don't know if it would do anything near to what it did to me back then. Not that I'm an entirely different person all the way, or anything. I'm depressingly related to the me of back then. Lonely and always needing some solace connection to avoid abandonment. Depressing. I "lost" a friend today (officially. It would pro...moreIt has been a long time since I have read Jude the Obscure. I was fourteen or fifteen (ninth grade of high school age, either way). I'm thirty-one as of this writing. I don't know if it would do anything near to what it did to me back then. Not that I'm an entirely different person all the way, or anything. I'm depressingly related to the me of back then. Lonely and always needing some solace connection to avoid abandonment. Depressing. I "lost" a friend today (officially. It would probably be clear to anyone but me this person was not really my friend. Not to get into long personal stories in book reviews, or anything). (He also recently berated me for reading Thomas Hardy. Another reason for me to regard Thomas Hardy as more my friend than ever before. I'm unreasonable like that.) It's hard to get really good friends. I think I could keep this at the back of my mind and remember it being there for me, once.

Or I could risk it?

Quick note on the ethics of review writing/bad memories/changing hearts and tastes: I don't care about the appearance of integrity that much. I worry if my mind plays tricks on me. I do want to reread Jude the Obscure. I'm also afraid to. (It would also be depressing to go back.)

I really liked what Eh wrote in one of her reviews that her memory of a book (don't recall which one but I could look it up) was like a quilt after many washings. That was so good. It is a bit like that. I also feel pangs when some things come back to me. I guess it's like memory of anything you "lived" through. Some things are like they never happened. Others are like they happened just yesterday.

I remember feeling lost, like not sure how to withstand, or stand, or anything. I'm an emotional reader, probably. Does living as reading count? (My former friend also said that all the good stories have already been written. I thought that was like saying all the good lives have already been lived. Made me mad.) I count Jude the Obscure as my life. I'm really sad today.

It wasn't school reading for me, like most books. I'd sneak in reading in drama class. It's lucky I didn't have to write papers on it...

P.s. karen's Jude review is my favorite. A hidden Esteban review I also like.(less)

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Jul 23, 2007

Drew rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: men

Shelves: lit

Jude is every man. He is obscure, in that his choices make no sense, and yet complete sense. He manages to impregnate a local woman he has no aspirations to marry, and yet does. He abandons hope for a rewarding and successful career. Then he carries on with his cousin, mainly because she is a way out of his dull life. All along, we are reminded of what could have been, if only this man could settle for one woman. He meets the best end for a character I've ever read, and one that is more th...more

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May 07, 2011

Christopher H. rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: british-literature, victorian-literature, historical-fiction, thomas-hardy, read-in-2010, favorites, my-western-canon, favorite-rereads, read-in-2011

A few days ago I finished Thomas Hardy's last novel, Jude the Obscure. I was completely overwhelmed and truly needed a few days to reflect upon the experience and collect my thoughts before attempting a review. Bear in mind too, that this is the first time that I have read Jude, and I sincerely believe that this novel may require a lifetime of reading and study in order to fully tease out and understand the import of Hardy's message.

First, a little background about the novel. This...more

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Apr 03, 2008

Jessica rated it

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Recommends it for: YOU, if you've finished all the chicken soup for the soul books already

Recommended to Jessica by: the guy at the crisis hotline

Shelves: kind-of-depressing

If I remember correctly, this book is a real laff riot, with a touchingly sweet and uplifting message. I think I read somewhere that Hardy was feted in the streets of his hometown Christminster and given the Feelgood Author of 1895 Award for this baby, and rightly so! What a heartwarming gift for someone who's feeling down, such as a student who's just lost his financial aid, or someone you know who's trying to make an unconventional relationship work despite social strictures. Okay, full disclo...more

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Jul 02, 2007

Ted rated it

i've avoided thomas hardy for most of my life: first from ignorance, then on the advice of a few friends whose taste i trust. then i read an inspirational article in the tls this summer, on the relationship -- both personal and working -- between hardy and henry ibsen, which directed me towards jude the obscure. the description i found there led me to hope that the novel's themes (anticlericism, the emerging modern person, etc) would be right up my alley. so i took the dive.[return][return]i wis...more

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Aug 04, 2007

Chris rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: classic_literature, all-time_favorites

To say that the book is bleak is to say that the sun is warm. Bleak is the entire point of Jude the Obscure. In fact, most of Thomas Hardy's works can be summed up with that same word.

Characters in Hardy's books make bad decisions. As a reader, you "watch" them make bad decisions, and you know that there will be consequences. But Hardy never lets you believe that all of the misery in your life is self-inflicted - because even when his characters try to make the right de...more

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Dec 31, 2007

Lauren rated it

· review of another edition

Just about killed me. An incredible, crushing novel. Hardy writes what I feel. If I didn't know any better about Hardy, I'd think this novel was the 19th-century "Requiem for a Dream," the equivalent of an anti-emotional, anti-adultery PSA. That's how harsh it is. I know a lot of people were made to read it in high school, but then again, I had the weird childhood. The epitome of a tragic figure, Jude Fawley is shut down at every turn... or built up slightly, only to lose everything. T...more

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Dec 16, 2008

Sarah rated it

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Shelves: kindred-characters

As with Tess, this book concerns the injustices inherent to conventional society with particular emphasis on marriage and religion. Unlike Tess, it's written primarily from the male perspective -- and perhaps more closely reflects Thomas Hardy's own point of view.

I found it validating and infuriating by turns. At times, it was disheartening. I very much related to Sue but couldn't quite discern Hardy's tone in regard to her. (I wish reviewers would stop calling her a frigid narcissis...more

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May 30, 2011

Crystal rated it

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Recommends it for: only those who have read other Hardy novels

So if you are a literary person and have read Thomas Hardy before, then go ahead and read this one. If you haven’t read any other Thomas Hardy works, PLEASE don’t start with this one. I took a class on Thomas Hardy literature because it was taught by one of my favorite professors. I visited “Thomas Hardy” country in the southern westerly region of England because it was an opportunity to travel abroad. I’ve read several of Hardy’s novels – but none were quite as depressing and dark as this o...more

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Nov 25, 2011

Richard G rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: fiction

Sinking into the abyss.

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Apr 22, 2011

Amanda rated it

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Shelves: classics, 2011, worth-remembering

Jude and Sue are two distant cousins from a family that has had bad luck with marriage. They’ve both been warned not to marry anyone, but both do, and both marriages fail. Now they are in love with each other, but decide that the only way to stay in love with each other is to continue to live together outside the conventions of marriage.

Jude the Obscure was Thomas Hardy’s last novel. It was so controversial and caused such an outrage in the Victorian reading public that he decided ne...moreJude and Sue are two distant cousins from a family that has had bad luck with marriage. They’ve both been warned not to marry anyone, but both do, and both marriages fail. Now they are in love with each other, but decide that the only way to stay in love with each other is to continue to live together outside the conventions of marriage.

Jude the Obscure was Thomas Hardy’s last novel. It was so controversial and caused such an outrage in the Victorian reading public that he decided never to write another novel. This is my third book read by Hardy, and I can definitely see why it would have been considered controversial! First, though, let me explain a little more about my experience reading Jude, because it was a very difficult book to get through and I almost gave up on it.

The first book I read by Hardy was Tess of the D’Urbervilles, almost five years ago. It was extremely slow to start, with the first 125 pages consisting of almost entirely pastoral descriptions. The last 250 pages read twice as fast as the first 125. That unevenness and the pastoral qualities kept me from trying Hardy for years, even though I ultimately really enjoyed Tess. Then last August I listened to The Return of the Native, which was far more evenly paced and remains my favorite Hardy novel. I’ve liked Hardy much more since Native, and have been eager to read more, so I chose Jude to be my third novel.

I started it in early March, but got bored quickly and put it aside for awhile, to pick it up again in the past few weeks. Slow, slow, slow. And dull. Oh gosh this book started off so boring. It wasn’t just pastoral description. It was the repetitive mundane lives of two or three characters for pages upon endless pages. My copy of the book is just over 400 pages, and I nearly gave up as I reached page 200. That’s a good attempt, right? But something kept me pressing on, probably my love for Native. The book hadn’t been terribly controversial yet, so I also knew that was coming. I took a couple of quick breaks from the book so that I wouldn’t get so bored that I quit, and eventually made it to page 275. A new character is introduced about then, and his sudden appearance changes the book. It was like Hardy suddenly found his stride. Those last 125 pages were AMAZING. Not just good, but absolutely fantastic. So good that even though I hated the first 2/3rds of the book, I still give it 4-stars.

I can see exactly why this book ended Hardy’s career. He doesn’t just have a couple living together like they’re married when they’re not. He violently attacks religion, law, and Victorian social customs. He makes it quite clear that the people who are the most moral are the ones that turn their backs on custom and religious edicts, and that religion and custom turn their backs on the people who are most moral. He shows that when people live by the church’s rule or go back to the church, they destroy themselves and the people around them. I had no idea, before reading this book, how vehement Hardy could be! This book punched me in the gut. The climax scene (with the children, if anyone else has read this) was the most powerful and horrifying thing I’ve read in a really, really long time. I already know this book will stay with me forever. It was definitely very worth sticking with, even if the first 275 pages sucked.

I am ever more impressed with Hardy, and am happy I have several more of his books on my shelves to read. I hope the rest will be more even than this one, I admit, but I won’t be giving any of them up quickly if they aren’t. I highly recommend Jude the Obscure, though definitely with the warning that it might be good to skim the first 250 or so pages if they aren’t holding your attention.(less)

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Jul 07, 2011

Charlotte rated it

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I tossed this into my suitcase on my way to Oxford and only realized after I had arrived that it is set in Oxford. After that, of course, I had to read the book. I enjoy Thomas Hardy's writing as much in this book as in Tess. For some reason, I love the many allusions, the heavy foreshadowing, and his earnest, suffering characters.

However, I found the plot much less believable in this book than in Tess. I feel that tragedy should have a feeling of inevitability but the main trag...more

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Sep 12, 2008

Jamie rated it

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If you are looking for a good cry, Thomas Hardy is always there. I did not like Jude the Obscure nearly as much as I have liked some of Hardy's other works (i.e. Tess and Return of the Native), but I still very much enjoyed it. I never really liked Sue Brideshead as a character, but I found myself rooting for Jude the whole way through the book and hoping that she would say yes to marriage. Alas!

By the end of the book I was sobbing. Not that I didn't know it was coming. Hardy ha...more

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Dec 10, 2008

Choupette rated it

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Shelves: classics, own-or-access

More like 3.5.

I felt misled about this book. It wasn't nearly as dark and depressing as it claimed to be, and as such was disappointing to me. Also it seemed to be less about Jude's struggles to get into a university (indeed he seemed to give up rather easily to my mind) as promised by the blurb, than about his romantic trials and tribulations, particularly those involving Sue Bridehead, whose character, incidentally, drove me up the wall. A more pathetic, snivelling, 'quivering', de...more

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Sep 19, 2007

Elwood Glover is currently reading it · review of another edition

Recommends it for: anyone

It's a classic. The edition I own is actually a British paperback that I bought in 1976, when I was 20. I started it at that time but didn't finish it; picked it up again 10 or 15 years later and read it through. I found the story gripping but was irritated by the arbitrary-seeming strokes of misfortune that afflict the main character. I've since read several of Hardy's earlier novels ("Far From the Madding Crowd", "The Mayor of Casterbridge", "A Pair Of Blue Eyes"...more

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Mar 19, 2008

Colin Hogan rated it

· review of another edition

I bought this book so long ago. During my sophomore year in high school, I was in Kaufman and Hart's "The Man Who Came to Dinner," a play littered with literary allusions. I don't know why, but I decided that I was going to make my way through them.

Eight years later, I have completed the first of the books, and it was great. Last fall, I read "Far from the Madding Crowd," but this was much better. Mostly over 400 pages of Victorian prose is not easy to get t...more

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Sep 09, 2008

Amy rated it

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Shelves: fiction

This was difficult to rate. I wholeheartedly agree with another reader who wrote: "Some days it was a five star read and others a two, with me wanting to throw it at a wall." The characters were so human, so painful in their weaknesses. It was heartbreaking to witness the obscure (yes!) demise of humans with so much initial promise. I'm half-cursing Hardy. But he does make his statement (shockingly for the time period) about marriage, social norms, feminism. Sue drove me crazy th...more

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Aug 29, 2008

Rob Walter rated it

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This man can write! It was recommended to me by Nicholas Manning, but he failed to mention that the man can write. Very beautiful, economical, unselfconscious prose that is refreshing if you've been working through too much Don DeLillo and Martin Amis.

I'm only about thirty pages in, but so far the plot is basically the same as Harry Potter (with about the same depth of charecterisation). I read Tess of the D'Urbervilles many years ago and hated it because of that stupid I-love-you-but-...more

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May 27, 2008

Dorothy rated it

This one killed my Hardy reading streak. Jude is the male version of Tess of the D'Urbervilles: witless, gullible, and uber-dramatic. He wallows in self pity while stumbling through his highly improbable, moronic existence, which reads like a twisted version of "A Series of Unfortunate Events." Suicide? It's a given. Adultery? You bet. Incest, polygamy and infectious disease? Yes indeedy. I was so hardened by the grisly events of previous chapters that I found myself rejoicing a...more

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Apr 24, 2007

Claire rated it

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this book annoys me to an incredible degree, forced to study Hardy at college, i developed a loathing for his novels that has never faded. perhaps the most trying element is 'young father Time' and idea that 'dun because we are too menny' - what on earth was Hardy thinking? a child can spell 'because' but not 'done' or 'many'?

his poetry is all right, mind.

the best thing I ever learnt about TH was that when he was born, the midwife thought he was dead and chucked him int...more

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Nov 16, 2007

Meaghan rated it

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Recommends it for: Hardy fans

Shelves: classics

Midway through I called my boyfriend, who has an English lit degree, and asked, "Um, besides all the spouse-swapping, is anything actually going to happen in this book?" He laughed and said, "Trust me. Something's going to happen."

Something did.

I finished the book at 3:00 a.m. and couldn't sleep all night. I staggered down to breakfast and sat in the cafeteria with such a traumatized expression that several friends asked me what had happened. Thomas Ha...more

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Nov 26, 2008

Nate rated it

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Read this if you're looking for that final push towards suicide.

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Dec 31, 2007

Salma rated it

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Shelves: classic-lit

I probably have no business reviewing this at all, since I've gotten only halfway through the book. And that was three years ago. I adore Hardy, so what the hell is it about this tome that had me putting it aside every time I progressed a few pages? Maybe because it was taking so long for things to happen, for Chrissake. I've read about how this book shocked society through all the horrid things that happened, and I'm like- okay, where do these horrible things happen? Page 300? Maybe I'm just hy...more

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Jul 27, 2010

Michelle added it · review of another edition

I thought I loved Thomas Hardy. He has a way with words that places the reader at the scene and brings those scenes to life for any modern reader. However, after careful reflection, I am not too certain I stand by my conviction that I like Thomas Hardy. See, he's too depressing. Most of his characters are put into unfortunate situations, find their way out for a bit and then end up worse than when the reader is first introduced to them. This holds true with Tess of the D'Urbervilles and hol...moreI thought I loved Thomas Hardy. He has a way with words that places the reader at the scene and brings those scenes to life for any modern reader. However, after careful reflection, I am not too certain I stand by my conviction that I like Thomas Hardy. See, he's too depressing. Most of his characters are put into unfortunate situations, find their way out for a bit and then end up worse than when the reader is first introduced to them. This holds true with Tess of the D'Urbervilles and holds true with Jude the Obscure as well.

With Jude, Hardy presents the dreamer beset by reality. This is a clear sign that not all will bode well for dear Jude. As this is a general theme in Hardy's works, one has to wonder that Hardy just did not like those who dreamt of a better life and sought ways to improve themselves. It is such a negative attitude as well as the exact opposite of the American dream.

One cannot mention Jude the Obscure without mentioning marriage, as this is where the novel gets all of its tension, which drives the plot forward. As it is believed that Jude the Obscure is relatively autobiographical, make no mistake that Hardy does not have a very positive view of the status of marriage. His is rather a very modern point of view in a Victorian era that is not ready for such ideas. The idea of marriage is a continual issue for Sue, which is where the reader can see the biggest conflict. In Sue, Hardy presents the dichotomy between individual values (no marriage) and society's values (marriage required). According to Hardy, one cannot coexist with the other, and a person must choose between either set of values. However, to choose against society requires a thick skin and a level of patience and/or ignorance of society's scorn - neither of which could be used to describe Sue. As for the institution itself, Hardy still is rather pessimistic. At one point in time, the narrator mentions that a truly married couple did not act affectionate but rather should yell and argue and throw furniture at each other. Both Sue and Jude marry people that repulse them, yet their love for each other is not allowed to flourish because it is not contained within the institution of marriage. The message the reader cannot help but take away from these occurrences is that love has no place in marriage. Interesting, no?

Hardy's discussion of children is just as depressing. There is much talk about whether children would be better off never having been born if they are to be born into a poor family.

"'I think that whenever children be born that are not wanted they should be killed directly, before their souls come to 'em, and not allowed to grow big and walk about!'" (pg. 355)

This begs the question whether Hardy is trying to tell us that Jude was essentially doomed to a life of suffering from the moment he was born. Either way, it is a powerful statement, about an issue that has been an ongoing, and passionate debate for years.

All of these issues leads to a very dark, morose novel. I struggled to get behind the characters, as Sue drove me insane with her waffling and inability to make a decision and stick with it, and Jude was not forceful enough. I kept waiting for the moment for Jude to stand up for his beliefs and his happiness. Rather, he sits back and accepts everything that happens to him, without making an effort to change it for his own benefit. It wasn't that Jude lacked backbone; he just lacked a desire to stand and fight. I remained disappointed with Jude and distracted by Sue throughout the novel, even while I kept hoping that either character would change. Neither one did.

Overall, I cannot say that I truly enjoyed Jude the Obscure, but I did glean a bit more about life in Victorian England for the desolate and downtrodden. Having to leave one town for another when the work ran out, having to past muster with a potential landlord just to rent a room, living in such small towns that were geographically close together so that gossip easily spread from one village to another - it was a rough life, one that requires spirit, drive, and an unwillingness to succumb to the pressures of life. Unfortunately, neither Sue nor Jude had any one of those characteristics, and therein lies my issue. I would have appreciated more character growth from both main characters. I feel like I should not have supported the two minor characters more than I did the two main ones, but as they showed the most gumption, they earned my admiration. Hardy is a must-read for any classic lover only because he portrays various milieu of English life with precision. It isn't the happiest of pictures most times, but as a learning experience for an understanding of English life outside what is taught in history books, he is one of the best.(less)

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Jan 15, 2012

Michael rated it

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This is the second reading of Jude. At first reading I thought that the novel was a novel of Jude's endless strife and struggle with his ideals ending in tragedy. This time around I became more interested in Sue and her psychological nature. I searched for some solid reasons for for her sadistic behavior. Is she a passive aggressive? A new women? Is Hardy making a comment about women in general? These and other questions bothered me.
Sue has potential: she is smart, attractive; she has the...more

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Oct 23, 2011

Margarita rated it

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Masterful. Thomas Hardy's style is fully developed with this, his final work in prose. I find myself glad he didn't produce any more novels, as I am overwhelmed and exhausted by his treatment of humanity. Tess of the D'Urbervilles was inimitable to me, but Jude the Obscure is definitely the apex, peak, and pinnacle of Hardy's writing genius. He holds nothing back; he exposes every facet of human nature, knowing how gravely the topics would be received in his day. This is a bold, unwavering treat...more

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Jun 11, 2011

Steve Lindahl rated it

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There may be a powerful ending in Jude the Obscure that I haven't reached yet because at this time I still have about 20% to go. But I've reached what was clearly a climax in the relationship of Jude and Sue and I've certainly read enough to talk about the book.

This novel was published in its entirety in 1895, although it ran as a magazine serial prior to that. According to Wikipedia, Thomas Hardy started working on it in 1887. The work does what I love fiction to do. It presents...moreThere may be a powerful ending in Jude the Obscure that I haven't reached yet because at this time I still have about 20% to go. But I've reached what was clearly a climax in the relationship of Jude and Sue and I've certainly read enough to talk about the book.

This novel was published in its entirety in 1895, although it ran as a magazine serial prior to that. According to Wikipedia, Thomas Hardy started working on it in 1887. The work does what I love fiction to do. It presents ideas that are thought provoking. Its ideas were controversial at the time it was released, but there are enough universal themes in the work to make it relevant for today's readers.

Jude is a young man living in Marygreen England in the late nineteenth century. He is living with his aunt and working in her bakery. He is an excellent student at a time when physical skills are more appreciated than scholarship. But he admires his teacher and longs to learn as much as possible with the goal of eventually becoming a member of the clergy.

Jude is seduced by a local woman who tricks him into marriage. Their union lasts a short time and the two go their separate ways. But Jude is now burdened with an attachment that interferes with his desire to marry Sue Bridehead, his cousin with whom he falls in love. The novel follows their relationship as they try to deal with the dictates of nineteenth century England.

The ideas in Jude the Obscure are critical of organized religion and of the institution of marriage as it was in the 1800's. But it is also a story about gossip and people who are not allowed to live their lives the way they've chosen because of the society around them. It's also about insecurity and overreaction, making the characters universally human.

One of the aspects of the book I found most interesting was the way the relationship of cousins was treated in that era. It seems much more complicated than I had realized. Jude and Sue were allowed to marry at that time and no one seemed to frown on that. But they could also be treated as if they were brother and sister, if they wanted to be. It seemed odd that in a time when there was so little acceptance of differences in lifestyles people were allowed to define their relationships with their cousins.

Hardy often tells the reader what his characters are thinking through their dialog rather than showing through their actions. At times that feels a bit stilted, but there are enough subtleties in the story to compensate for that. It's a good read and the Kindle version is free on Project Gutenberg.(less)

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About Thomas Hardy

Thomas Hardy, OM, was an English author of the naturalist movement, although in several poems he displays elements of the previous romantic and enlightenment periods of literature, such as his facination with the supernatural. Though he regarded himself primarily as a poet and composed novels mainly for financial gain. The bulk of his work, set mainly in the semi-fictional land of Wessex, delineat...more

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“But no one came. Because no one ever does.” — 73 people liked it

“...it is foreign to a man's nature to go on loving a person when he is told that he must and shall be that person's lover. There would be a much likelier chance of his doing it if he were told not to love. If the marriage ceremony consisted in an oath and signed contract between the parties to cease loving from that day forward, in consideration of personal possession being given, and to avoid each other's society as much as possible in public, there would be more loving couples than there are now. Fancy the secret meetings between the perjuring husband and wife, the denials of having seen each other, the clambering in at bedroom windows, and the hiding in closets! There'd be little cooling then.” — 42 people liked it

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