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 Well written but appallingly conceived October 6, 2008
Thomas Hardy cinematic writing is extraordinarily visual and pulls new readers into his redrawn world of Wessex. Tess of the d'Urbervilles is probably his most popular novel, while The Mayor of Casterbridge is the most complete.
However, Hardy's characters suffer from being sometimes little more than instruments of his plot aspirations. This is least true in the Mayor of Casterbridge, and most true in Jude the Obscure. When his plot aspirations are benign, as in Far from the Madding Crowd, this is fairly easy to overlook. When the characters are otherwise compelling, such as Tess, most readers will let a single slip by. However, in Jude the Obscure we have a character whom Hardy has determined will lead a miserable life, through no fault of his own, and largely a result of society's refusal to accept his high moral principles.
Hardy's morbid desire to write stories of this kind is famously discussed by T S Eliot in After strange gods, although his view is somewhat rebutted by David Cecil in Hardy The Novelist - An Essay in Criticism. You can argue back and forth about whether Hardy really was morbid, but Jude the Obscure is certainly the book which furnishes the most evidence. The 'Little Father Time' element, for example, is strange, unconvincing, and serves only to emphasise the injustice of life which Hardy is trying to demonstrate.
If you're studying Hardy at A-level or university, then you absolutely have to read this book, because it's impossible to understand Hardy without it. If you're reading through the Hardy canon for pleasure, though, you might be better starting on Tess of the D'Urbervilles, the Mayor of Casterbridge, Far From the Madding Crowd, The Woodlanders, The Return of the Native and Under the Greenwood Tree.
Hardy's visual gift and writing style does not desert him in this novel, but his underlying conception is deeply flawed.
 A (surprisingly) great novel! July 3, 2008
I loved this book! When I decided to read it I had so many preconceptions about what it would be like (sadly, I used to equate Hardy with `boring'). I was so wrong. A lot of people warned me against Hardy's writing style, but in Jude it was so beautifully descriptive - he brings the characters and their environment to life. When I sat down to read this, I truly felt myself melt into Jude's world. Furthermore, as a couple of other reviewers have mentioned, I was really shocked by the action of the novel. I found myself enthralled by certain scenes, and when the book came to a close I was seriously gutted - I wanted more. I would definitely recommend!
 Surprise Literature read December 6, 2007
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
I had to read this for my 3rd year university English course. I made a special effort this year to try and read as much of the required reading as possible, and this was one of the best of the bunch.
It is fairly easy to read, and has an interesting enough plot line to keep you involved. I recommend it as light reading, but do a little analysis and research and you'll find there's a lot of modernist themes in there too. Be aware there are one or two (nasty) twists in the story too.
 Wasn't overly impressed September 6, 2007
3 out of 5 found this review helpful
A rather disturbing tale, which though has moments of greatness ultimately fails to satisfy. The story tells of Jude, who sets his heart on attaining entrance to Christminister (Oxbridge) but ultimately denied because of his station. It tells also of his love for his cousin Sue, and ultimately one sees the tragic spiralling conclusion long before it happens. Despite its flaws it's still worth the read and though overly long is still worth it if not simply for the masterful scene where Jude after his rejection writes on the Christminister gate I have understanding as well as you; I am not inferior to you; and who knoweth not such things as these?
The Modern Hardy March 7, 2007
10 out of 10 found this review helpful
If like me, your were put off Hardy by studying him at school or if you have in your mind's eye a writer obsessed with Wessex and a kind of moralising pastoralism, then try reading Jude. Here is a novel written with real emotional conviction and shot through with an anger which only comes from real experience. It is really a book about rebelling against conventions particularly about sexual morality and the aspirations of the artisan. Jude Fawley is an abandoned child who from his earliest years dreams of a richer fuller life both culturally and physically which he believes will be opened to him through higher education, symbolised by the distant spires of Christminster (Oxford). The passion with which Jude adores everything the venerable university stands for is only matched by his awareness of the futility of his dreams but that does not stop his hunger for books and learning which occupy his every free moment as he practices the trade of a stonemason. However, his sensual appetites override his academic ambitions and he finds himself imprisoned in a marriage devoid of the passion that brought it about. Meeting Sue Bridehead who he perceives as his soul mate underlines his captive state and they both come to question the very purpose of marriage resolving to live together without the need for a piece of paper. Yet the consequences of offending Victorian social codes are severe: from social exclusion to the loss of employment and indirectly the death of their children. Sue's response involves a return to the mindset she eschewed in her youth, Jude remains defiant bemoaning the fact that he was `fifty years ahead of his time' and coming to hold his beloved Oxford and its metaphysics in contempt. Rarely has the anguish of broken dreams had more resonance than here. Indeed Hardy prefigures the modernist obsession with self and the clash between impulse and duty. The tone throughout is bleak and often bitter, but the emotional dilemmas are so vivid and authentic that the scenes have genuine pathos and the characters the depth to engender sympathy. The book has a touch of the classical tragedy about it, and even Hardy's rather pedestrian language scarcely limits the power of his heartfelt plea for the tolerance of difference. If you haven't read Hardy begin here, if you think you don't like his work, Jude is the book to change your mind.
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