jude the obscure

Jude Fawley, poor and working-class, longs to study at the University of Christminster, but he is rebuffed, and trapped in a loveless marriage. He falls in love with his unconventional cousin Sue Bridehead, and their refusal to marry when free to do so confirms their rejection of and by the world around them. The shocking fate that overtakes them is an indictment of a rigid and uncaring society.

A collection of eight critical essays on Thomas Hardy's last major novel, arranged in chronological order of publication.

Contains an authoritative text of a poor stone carver, Jude Fawley, who is torn between his dreams of a university education and the desires of his own carnal nature and also includes background information on the novel as well as Hardy's nonfictional writings and poems and comments by critics on his other works.

Discusses the importance, historical context, and critical reception of Thomas Hardy's novel, Jude the Obscure.