Book Review: Hard Times, by Charles Dickens

[olde_fashioned]

Title: Hard Times
Written by: Charles Dickens
Genre: British Literature, Fiction, Classics

Who was the hero of this book? As Thackeray’s Vanity Fair is called the Novel without a Hero, I likewise tried to decide who Charles Dickens intended as the protagonist of this book. Just when I finally decided on Lousia, she met Mr. Harthouse, and then I was a bit flummoxed. Cecilia Jupe, anyone? Only her part was so small...

WARNING! Spoilers follow!



Postitive Elements:

~ I really liked the character of Sissy Jupe. She was sweet, loyal, and steadfast, and loved selflessly. Even when others treated her abominably, she bore it like a saint! (but don’t worry, her aunt wasn’t in the way, and didn’t die. Lol. Please excuse E3 reference!) Even though she was “less learned” than say, Lousia, her naivete and sweetness contrasted strongly with Lousia’s bitterness.

~ Stephen Blackpool. Need I say any more? The man was a model citizen. And I suspect a distant cousin of Mr. Rochester’s. ;-P lol. I liked him and Rachael a lot, and I thought their relationship was touching. I felt sorry for him when he had to leave Coketown (not that I blame him) when he was abandoned by his class. People can be so cruel.

~ The life of the factory workers and the whole industrial town theme is quite interesting to me, *coughNorth&Southcough* so I enjoyed the different portrayal and picture of such a life.

Negative Elements:

~ Josiah Bounderby is DISGUSTING!!! I can just picture a short, fat, bald, greasy and slimey creep in a cheap suit. *gag* Sorry, but he really repulsed me. Every pompous speech was an odious method of torture for me. (okay, so I’m exaggerating a little…) But he was such a lying windbag that I wanted to punch him in the nose every other page. I think Lousia got dropped on the head as a baby in order to even consider marrying such a dolt.

~ Mrs. Sparsit is a puzzle. I couldn’t really figure her out. Did she, or did she not, like Mr. Bounderby? If she did, then why did she call him a noodle? If she didn’t then why put up with him for so long? I really don’t get it. I did get a laugh out of her Corinthian features and beaked nose, though. ;-P

~ Mr. Gradgrind. Really, can anyone consider him anything but horrible? Granted he seems to care for his children AFTER he’s ruined them emotionally, but I really think his selfish poundings of “Fact, fact, fact!” did a world of harm. (“Gee,” one who has actually read the book for themselves might say. “What a genius olde_fashioned is -- she managed to figure that out!” *snort*) I wonder if Dickens didn’t believe that “knowledge was power”? Or rather that there can be too much of a good thing.

Conclusion:

You know, this was the first Dickens I’d ever read, and I admittedly had a bit of difficulty getting used to his style. Not to disparage him any, it took me longer to get used to Jane Austen since Sense & Sensibility was my first exposure to her novels, and the same with G.A. Henty. Dickens certainly has his own “flavour” and as I heard someone else express it so quaintly, he was clearly getting paid by the word. ;-P But several times, when he was more serious, I was downright impressed by the eloquent beauty of his phrases, especially when describing an object. I’d like to know if there are any novels of his that have less of the comedic attempts and more of the serious and realistic. (anyone?)

I suspect that different people could get different “messages” out of this book. I was thinking of what exactly Dickens was trying to convey, and my humble opinion he was trying to illustrate the dangers of depriving human beings of creativity, imagination, love, and affection. All work and no play, if you will. Also, from what little I know about Dickens’ childhood, working in a blacking factory and all that, I couldn’t help but wonder if the underlying theme of “Fact, fact, fact!” was intended to mirror his own experiences. I caught one actual references to blacking bottles, and there were countless mentionings of the importance of a happy and carefree childhood with proper amounts of imagination. I don’t know. I probably tend to read too much into an author’s actual life being inserted into their works, but I can’t help it sometimes. After all, they *do* do it often. But was Dickens doing it?

To be brutally honest, this book is not in my top 10. (*hides* sorry Katherine dear!) But, I will most certainly say that I liked it enough to persevere and I will be reading more Dickens in the future. We own both A Tale of Two Cities and Bleak House (hehehe -- good excuse to rent the mini-series!!!!) and I’d like to read those eventually. So, I guess you could say I’m a Dickens fan now. :-D

Comments

[musesong.livejournal.com]

It's been a while since I've read Hard Times and it was part of required reading on my course on Victorian England. I recall that he was targeting the Utilitarian philosophy so prevalent at the time.

I would say that it is an 'ensemble piece'. So many of Dickens novels focus on the issues behind them. I loved the contrast between facts and the imagination.

Not sure how much might have been autobiographical and perhaps it wasn't even consciously so.

[olde-fashioned.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the comment! I guess Dickens liked to tackle the issues prevalent in his day via his novels? I always think that makes an interesting read, learning about what was important and controversial back in the day. :-)

[belovedrose85.livejournal.com]

A Tale of Two Cities Is a masterfully written book, IMHO. When I first read it (at age 14) I hated it, but after reading it a second time four years later, I loved it! Dickens uses a lot of foreshadowing in ATOTC, and the plot is rather intense, especially in the third part. I think you would enjoy it. :)

[olde-fashioned.livejournal.com]

I've heard that, and I definitely want to read it. I like intense plots. ;-)

[prima-donna87.livejournal.com]

'Hard Times' is not my favorite of Dickens works.I read it a long time ago and hardly remember it.They just made a movie from it but I am not sure if I will watch it though.

[olde-fashioned.livejournal.com]

I thought about Netflixing the movie, but quite frankly I don't think anyone else in my family would like it since they hated Bleak House! ;-P

[olde-fashioned.livejournal.com]

LOL!

[oldfashioned84.livejournal.com]

yea, another great book review by you! :)

I actually haven't read much of Dickens either (unless you count books that I didn't finish such as A Christmas Carol...or if you count movies I've seen lol) I've been meaning to read more of his books for a long time, but I don't know when that will happen. You know how long my to-read list is already. :D

I wasn't familiar with the story at all, but based on your review, this book seems like it could be interesting... I liked the idea of the message that you got out of it about how it could be dangerous to take away creativity, love, etc. from people.

Still, when I get the chance to read more of Dickens books, I might start off with something else first like Bleak House (I actually liked that movie lol)

[olde-fashioned.livejournal.com]

Aw, thanks! :-D If I can create more readers by my reviews then I'm as happy as a clam! lol!

I have a copy of that. ;-) And I really liked what I saw of the movie, too. *sly grin*

[ourescape.livejournal.com]

What books are in your top ten, if you don't mind sharing? And have you posted book reviews for them?

[olde-fashioned.livejournal.com]

Hi! Thanks for the comment.

Actually, I haven't sat down and tried to determine that! It's a very good question though. Most of Jane Austen's books would probably be in there, since Emma is my favourite and P&P a close second. North & South by Elizabeth Gaskell would definitely be on the list as well, as would Robinson Crusoe and In Freedom's Cause by G.A. Henty.

What about you?

[ourescape.livejournal.com]

Wow, Emma as the favorite over Pride and Prejudice. That's a rare but nice surprise. I really love Emma. Have you seen the different movie versions of it? And have you seen the different movie versions of Jane Austen's other novels? Gah, there are millions of versions of Pride and Prejudice. I recently saw the first ever movie version of it. So much was different, but it was really very cute.

[olde-fashioned.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I know! Everyone likes P&P best it seems. It's a tough call, but I really love Emma. ;-) Yes, I've seen all 3 versions of Emma, and I've seen all 4 versions of P&P as well. I prefer the Kate Beckinsale Emma and the Firth/Ehle P&P. ;-P I remember liking the archery addition to the '40s version, but the costumes leave a little something to be disired IMVHO...

[http://users.livejournal.com/lady_jane_grey_/]

I just wanted to let you know that I nomintated at least one of your icons at costume_awards! Good luck!

[olde-fashioned.livejournal.com]

Thank you very much! And I appreciate your letting me know. ;-)

[katy-maud.livejournal.com]

I like the graphic you made . . . very apt, but I couldn't quite appreciate the flavour of Hard Times. Perhaps it will improve upon acquaintance.

[olde-fashioned.livejournal.com]

Thanks, Katy! LOL, perhaps your knowing Dickens better will improve your opinion of him? ;-P

I feel like a deicide :(

[iane-grey.livejournal.com]

I writhe with guilt, thinking about the fact I played a part in compelling you to read this book. I should not have mentioned it! Nonetheless, I feel pleased that you should have noticed the moments during which Dickens was on true poetic form. Did you notice his choice of names too? A Jupe is a tunic used to cover armor - quite fitting for a girl who's strength is masked by her good nature :) I am presently finishing a JA compilation, closing with Love and Freindship (it's fascinating to compare Percy Shelley with Edward Lindsay Talbot!) - I will write my feelings on HT when I return, and in the meantime await instructions as to what comes next?

P.s. I have seen WaD *rolls with glee* I finally bought it, as it happens, and it has been part of my staple diet while I was recently ill. I think the TV series clarified for me much of what I didn't understand from the book - the relationship between Preston and Mrs. Gibson before her second marriage, for example. I also hope you won't judge me to harshly, but I can't help sighing whenever Anthony Howell appears, and Molly comes to life far more then she did on the page. Naturally, I wanted to shrink Rosamond Pike Lady Harriet and put her away in pocket as a source of permanent company :D

Re: que?

[olde-fashioned.livejournal.com]

I had to look up deicide. ;-P Why do you feel guilty? Please don't feel guilty. :-( Did you miss the part where I said I'm a Dickens fan now? I'm GLAD you mentioned it because one of the things I enjoyed about it was knowing it was one of your favourites, and wondering which parts you liked best. ;-) (Maybe when you get back and have more time we can discuss and dissect it, heh heh)

I didn't catch the Jupe reference -- how clever! What else did I miss? This is why I like critical editions...

Instructions? I'm not a dictator, dear. Americans are usually democratic. ;-)

P.S. *claps hands with delight* Oh, I'm so glad you like it! I too, just got to see the first half (which I'd never seen before) and why would I judge you harshly? Everyone loves Roger Hamley! ;-P And I adore Lady Harriet!!! But you have the whip hand over me, for I had to send it back... What did you think of Mr. Gibson?

[twilight-luvers.livejournal.com]

I read A Tale of Two Cities in my freshman English and almost everyone hated it but I thought it was really good. I think I tried to read some other works by Dickens but Tale of Two Cities was the easiest one to get into with really interesting characters.

Two other recommendations: Tess of the D'urbervilles by Thomas Hardy and Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier. They are both beautiful stories.

[olde-fashioned.livejournal.com]

Thanks! Yet another vote for AToTC. I'll read it eventually. ;-)

I'm pretty sure I read Rebecca. The story reminds me a lot of Jane Eyre. ;-)