Jude the Obscure

 Thinking Activity :- Jude the Obscure

Hello Readers! This blog is responce to the Thinking Activity of Novel Jude the Obscure, assigned by Dilip Barad sir, The Department of English. In this blog I am going to present going to discuss some alloted question on the basis of my understanding.

Introduction of Writer :-

Thomas Hardy ( 1840 - 1928 ):-

"But no one came. Because no one ever does." - Thomas Hardy, Jude the Obscure 

Thomas Hardy was an English Novelist and Poet. He was a Victorian writer. He was a highly critical of much of in Victorian Society. He set much of his work in Wessex, England. Many of his Novels concern tragic characters struggling against their passions and social circumstances. His Notable works are below.

• Tess of the D'Urbervilles 
• Far From the Madding Crowd
• The Mayor of Casterbridge 
• Jude the Obscure
• A pair of Blue Eyes 

His Realism, prose style, characterization and social criticism in his novel are works of social commentary. He was a fierce critic of poverty with social stratification. Thomas Hardy is best known for his novels, all of which were published in the mid to late 19th century. His last novels, Tess of D'Urbervilles and Jude the Obscure are generally considered as his finest work.

Jude the Obscure:-

Jude the Obscure is a Novel written by Thomas Hardy. It is published in book form in 1895. It is  a last work of Thomas Hardy. Jude Fawley,  fictional character , who is the protagonist of Novel. He is a poor Villagers, wants to enter the school at Christminster. Whole story is based on this character. Themes of novel are below.

Themes of Novel :- 

Marriage:-

In the Novel Jude the Obscure marriage is a major theme. Much of the Obscure the institution of marriage, which Hardy saw as flawed and unjust. The Novel's plot is organised to wring all the possible tragedy out of an unhappy marriage, as Jude is first guilted into marrying Arabella by her pregnancy, and Sue marries Philotson mostly to make Jude jealous. Marriage in Jude the Obscure:

Richard Philotson - Sue Bridehead and

Jude Fawley - Arabella Donne

But both the Character immediately regret their decisions, and realise how a single impulsive decision can affect their entire lives. when they meet each other and fall in love, Sue and Jude's pure connection is constantly obstructed by their earlier marriages, and Hardy even presents the tragedy of Little Father Time's murder - Suicide as a natural result of broken marriages and unhappy relationship.

The novel is not a simple diatribe against marriage, but instead illustrates a complex, contradictory situation. Sue and Jude want their love to be true and spontaneous, but also totally monogamous and everlasting. The epigraph to the novel is " the letter killeth," which comes from a quote from Jesus in the Bible. Hardy intended this quote to refer to marriage, where the contract of the institution kills Joy and true love , but Hardy purposefully leaves off the optimism of the spirit - Jude and Sue's Joy is fleeting even when they are only following "Nature's Law," and in the end they find no good answer for how to properly love and live together. By the Novel's tragic end Hardy still leaves the question of marriage unanswered emphasizing only his dissatisfaction with the institution as it stands. So, we can say that Marriage is a central theme of Jude the Obscure.

Women in Society:-

In the Novel Jude the Obscure Sue Bridehead is a protagonist. She is a modern, free minded and complex heroine. Through this Character Hardy brings up many gender related issues. Sue is unique in Victorian society in that she lives with men without marrying them, as with her undergraduate student friend. Sue is highly intelligent and very well read, and she rejects the traditional Christianity of her society. She also works alongside both Philotson partly to further her own teaching position.

Despite her intelligence and independence, Sue fails at her endeavors throughout the book, and through her suffering Hardy critiques the society that punishes his heroine. Sue, like others women, is expected to be the property of the man she marries, so Sue is bound to Philotson for life even after their separation. Sue is never allowed to advance in her work because of herk marital status. As an unmarried, disgraced women she has no power in society.

While Hardy was ahead of his time in creating such a strong female character, he still clings to many gender stereotypes about women: Sue is emotionally fragile and often hysterical, changing her mind at the slightest whim and breking down in the face of tragedy. As an opposite to Sue, Arabella is greedy, sensual, and vain - the stereotypes of everything Victorian society found bad and sinful in women. Though Arabella is usually the antagonist, she is also the character who ends up the most fortunate in the plot, showing just how unprepared society was for a character like Sue.

Religion:-

Religion is another most important theme in the novel. Along with marriage and society, Hardy spends much of Jude the obscure critiquing religion and the institution of Christianity. He often portrays Christianity as life - denying and belonging to "the letter" that "killeth". In contrast, Sue is introduced as a kind of pre - Christian entity, an ethereal, pagan spirit, and she first appears buying figures of the ancient Greek gods, Venus and Apollo. Jude, meanwhile, hopes to join the clergy as part of his intellectual pursuits. At a model of Jerusalem, Sue wonders why Jerusalem should be honoured above Athens or Rome, but Jude is mesmerised by this city which is so important to Christianity.

Hardy again adds more nuance - Christianity may be the "right" way for his country and time, but it can still be used for his country and time, but it can still be used for less - than - pure purposes. As "Nature's law" fails Sue and Jude, so "Heaven's law" also fails them, and the letter of the law of Christianity can seem less moral then human nature, Hardy gives many examples of this, including Sue's return to Philotson, which is a kind of adultery even though they are legally and religiously married. As usual, Hardy ends without any clear answer. Hardy seems to reject a Christianity that is overly concerned with laws and traditions, but he doesn't portray paganism or atheism as a particularly fulfilling alternative either. Thus, we can say that religion is a very important theme in the novel.

Education:-

In the novel education is very significant theme. Hardy highlights many kinds of education Jude the Obscure. Most obviously we have to Jude's desire to get a university  degree and become an academic. Jude is in experienced with women and with social situation more generally, he is especially susceptible to Arabella's education. In the novel, the level of traditional education one reaches is closely tied to the class system, and if someone from Jude's class wants to learn, they must teach themselves. Alto generator seems to admire Jude's willingness to teach himself; he also points out the limits of autodidacticism, nothing that despite Jude's near constant studies, he cannot hope to compete on the university entrance exam against richer men who have hired tutors. So , we can say that theme of education is one of the most important thing in the novel.

Thus, we can say that Hardy write that a Jude the Obscure is concerned in particular with issues of class, education, religion, morality and marriage. These themes conspire to destroy the lives of Jude and Sue. So, all the themes which I portray above are very important themes in the novel Jude the Obscure. 

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