期刊名称：International Journal of English and Education
印刷版ISSN：2278-4012
出版年度：2012
卷号：1
期号：2
出版社：Brahmaputra Publishing House
摘要：Thomas Hardy was born at a time when, in Europe and in rest of the world, politicalforces were gathering strength to stage revolts and revolutions. He died two years before theonset of the Great Depression. Hardy had the unique opportunity to see the established feudalismreign of leading to the rise of bourgeoisie. Hardy’s life spanned two centuries: the second half ofthe 19th century and the first three crucial decades of the 20th century. All his novels chronicle hislife experiences clubbed with the social experiences. Thus his novel remains as a mirror toforecast the 19th century upheaval in the society. While reformation and reconstruction were theongoing progress in the 19th century, the darker side or the underworld of the same period mustnot go unrecorded. Thomas hardy’s works balances the brighter and the darker side of his societybalancing and justifying the true image of the society. While the majority of his themes arecentered on the disturbance of the society; this paper is limited with Jude the Obscure attemptingto analyze the disruption of the society through the protagonist: Jude Fawley.Hardy's last and by most accounts gloomy novel, Jude the Obscure details the dejectedlife and dishonorable death of Jude Fawley, a bright and motivated, but ultimately insignificant,man. The central idea of the work is the inability of an individual to overcome the social andpsychological forces that determine their lives. In Jude the Obscure, Hardy further explores thistheme in relation to the constricting forces he observed around him in Victorian society: class,religion, and sexuality. Thus, the novel describes Jude's unrealized dream to enter the universityat Christminster and his inability to remain happy with the woman he loved; Sue Bridehead,outside of the socially accepted tradition of marriage.
关键词：Hardy ; class ; religion ;Victorian era;Jude the Obscure
