Literature Review

Jude the Obscure is the most controversial novel of Thomas Hardy#8217; s work, however, this novel received extensive attention and has a great influence in the history of British literature.Jude the obscure primarily reflects the living,striving and spiritual pursuit of people in the middle and lower classes. It discusses many conflicts in human activities, such as love and marriage values, sex relations, and social moral concept. The thesis focuses on analyzing the reasons of Jude#8217;s tragedy from the unreasonable education and marriage system, and the influence of surrounding and personality.

2.1 Social background and ethics of the thesis

Thomas Hardy was born in June 1840 and died in 1928, he is not only a English poet and novelist but also a outstanding critical realistic writer who lived in the Victoria Age. Hardy #8217;s work reflected his pessimism and uncover the evil depths and selfishness of human. At the end of the 19th century,many profound changes took place in urban areas in many aspects such as politics, economy, customs, values and so on due to the industrial civilization and the rapid growth of capitalist economy. His work reveal the tragic destiny of people particularly of women and criticize capitalist growth, legal system and religion for their hypocritical actions.

2.2 Brief contents of the novel

In this novel, Jude is a man with diligence in study and high aspirations, he was a orphan, living with his aunt at Marygreen, which is a poor and underdeveloped place. To make his university dream come true, Jude worked hard and was a man deserved to be respected. At the age of 16, he had to work out so as to support the family, fetching water from the well and bringing bread to villagers. However, he didn#8217;t surrender to the hard environment or quit his ambition, instead, these factors became driving forces to push him advance. He admired Richard Phillotson, a school headmaster, a man of great learning. In order to be a intelligent man and attend the university, he red whatever books were available to him. Then, Arabella Donn, a butler#8217;s daughter, seduced Jude to have relations with her and forced him to marry her, as Arabella lied to him that she was pregnant. The marriage was based on a lie and they had neither love or sympathy for each other. They marriage finally broke down.

Jude then met Sue, they fell love for each other soon. Because, they resembled so much. Though she was the wife of Philloston, she thought her marriage was intolerable. Sue was a brilliant and independent woman, she looked down upon the conventions. So, she got divorced and was brave enough to live with Jude without caring about what people say about them. At lat, the society condemned their relationship and Jude lost the job of stonemason in the church and forced to leave the Artizans. What#8217;s worse, their children all committed suicide. Their hopes and aspirations were crashed one by one, finally, Jude and Sue left each other . Sue remarried with Philloston and Arabella tried all the means to remarry with Jude. While, Jude was desperate with the society, suffering from deep poverty and agony, he died. He was a victim of social law and religion.

2.3 The reasons for Jude#8217;s tragedy in Jude the obscure

2.3.1 Educational system

In Jude the obscure,the educational system was terribly unfair at that time, which caused one of the reason of the Jude#8217;s tragedy. Jude seized every opportunity to study on his own, dreaming one day he could go to university just like those noble students. But the emerging capitalism pushed lower workers into a severer situation of suppression.On the one hand,the flawed system distinguished the status of the poor and the rich and established a strict principle. On the other hand, the lower class#8217;s ideas are confined by the flawed and stupid social conventions. Jude lived in the Victorian society, thus everyone was equal before the law and everyone had the right to receive education. Even though Victorian Age in people#8217;s eyes seems to be full of gold and luxury, what cannot be ignored is the more and more furious contradiction between the bourgeoisie and the working class. Workers have to work very hard to survive, not to mention realizing dreams. Jude#8217;s persistent longing to being a university student and all his seemingly silly efforts makes Jude so peculiar. Unfortunately, because of his poverty, low status that led him no way to escape from the lowest depths of the actual social world, all of these are established on the basis of the interest of the ruling class. At that time, ruling class regards education as an important method to consolidate their dominant position.The true essence is to reveal the tragedies of the lower class like Jude, whom is too powerless to struggle against the unfair society and inhumane social class. From Hardy's point ot view, it seems like a conflict between individuals and society. As a matter of fact, it's a clash between workers and class. Jude#8217;s tragedy is not only the tragedy of life, but also the tragedy of times and society, in this situation, Jude had to failure.