Nossa
01-29-2008, 04:47 PM
As some people know, I'm not exactly the biggest fan of Charles Dickens, and therefore I wasn't that excited about reading his novel Hard Times for my novel course last term. And so now, as I finished reading it, I think it's time for an honest review.
For starters, Hard Times is one of the funniest works I've ever read. It's true that the dystopian world Dickens created is a gloomy one, but Dicken's description makes the reading process a bit easier.
The story in short tells the chronicles of the life of the main character, Mr. Gradgrind and the close circle of family and friends of his. As an excellent example on the utilitarian, matter-of-fact man, Mr. Gradgrind lived all his life loyal to his mathermatical way of thinking, of narrowing everything down to a matter of numbers and figures, with no regard to the human feelings, emotions and soul.
Throughout the story, many things happen to prove to Mr. Gradgrind the failure of his self-interest system. But though Dickens shows Mr.Gradgrind to be an essentially good person, working for the best, and meaning no harm, he's severly punished by the end of the novel, when he finds all his world falling apart. His daughter Louisa, who's an example on a respressed soul in the grinding system of her dad, comes home to him, running on a rainy night, escaping her disastrous marriage to her father's friend Mr. Bounderby, and telling him that she's wretched because of his system and his rules. His own son, Thomas, robbs the band he was working in, and justifies it by saying that his father told him that it's a 'rule' that out of all the bankers in the town, there are bound to be a few that are dishonest, and so who is he to question a rule?
Mr. Gradgrind finally finds himself running to the place that he formerly despised, the circuss, and asking for help from a man whom he never thought he'd even come in contanct with in normal circumstances, that is Mr. Sleary the circuss owner.
Charles Dickens's style and description makes it easier for the reader to enjoy the book.
I'd recommend it, though I'm not sure if everyone can like it. It takes a while to get used to Dickens's style of writing, but I believe that this is the most rewarding novel I've ever read by Dickens.
9/10
For starters, Hard Times is one of the funniest works I've ever read. It's true that the dystopian world Dickens created is a gloomy one, but Dicken's description makes the reading process a bit easier.
The story in short tells the chronicles of the life of the main character, Mr. Gradgrind and the close circle of family and friends of his. As an excellent example on the utilitarian, matter-of-fact man, Mr. Gradgrind lived all his life loyal to his mathermatical way of thinking, of narrowing everything down to a matter of numbers and figures, with no regard to the human feelings, emotions and soul.
Throughout the story, many things happen to prove to Mr. Gradgrind the failure of his self-interest system. But though Dickens shows Mr.Gradgrind to be an essentially good person, working for the best, and meaning no harm, he's severly punished by the end of the novel, when he finds all his world falling apart. His daughter Louisa, who's an example on a respressed soul in the grinding system of her dad, comes home to him, running on a rainy night, escaping her disastrous marriage to her father's friend Mr. Bounderby, and telling him that she's wretched because of his system and his rules. His own son, Thomas, robbs the band he was working in, and justifies it by saying that his father told him that it's a 'rule' that out of all the bankers in the town, there are bound to be a few that are dishonest, and so who is he to question a rule?
Mr. Gradgrind finally finds himself running to the place that he formerly despised, the circuss, and asking for help from a man whom he never thought he'd even come in contanct with in normal circumstances, that is Mr. Sleary the circuss owner.
Charles Dickens's style and description makes it easier for the reader to enjoy the book.
I'd recommend it, though I'm not sure if everyone can like it. It takes a while to get used to Dickens's style of writing, but I believe that this is the most rewarding novel I've ever read by Dickens.
9/10