by Thomas Hardy
It is hard to know what to say about this book. It held my interest and had some very well developed characters and a down to earth sort of feel about it overall. the majority of the book did not particularly grab me, it was almost as thought I was compelled to continue reading it simply because I was compelled to read.
I found Jude to be a strange creature, so ambitious and with such a great desire to learn, yet so easy to give in, especially to women. It is hard for my to understand why Arabella affected him the way she did when they met. From my experience, the quiet bookish man comes in two varieties. The first is shy and awkward and the other is strong and capable of being social, only he generally chooses not to be so. The first may or may not think about women often, but because of his weak character he is susceptible to the charms of such a creature as Arabella. The latter is intelligent and holds a strong mind above all else and will not easily fall prey to the tricks the fairer sex can play. He cares only for his work, his books, and maybe a woman who can match his wit. For most of my reading I thought of Jude as the latter type. The fact that he is able to speak his mind to the witch shows that he is not a complete weakling; so, it strikes me as strange that he is so susceptible to her tricks and never questions her odd behavior in the beginning. His actions seem to be contradictory, at least in my eyes.
The older Jude has a much more sound character. Which I suppose makes sense. The more I write, the less I have any idea what I am talking about. ::sigh:: I guess I'll just leave that and move on.
Sue is the character I found most interesting and peculiar. In the beginning she is a free spirit, not concerned with conformity or being anyone other than who she wants to be. the games she plays with Jude's head and heart are cruel, but she never feels bad for her actions and he never turns away.
I read this book in the middle of a second reading of Wuthering Heights and I found a striking resemblance between Sue and Catherine. Both have a habit of truly cherishing a person, yet continually keeping him at arms length. Both are petty and use the effects of her own harsh words or wrong actions against her object, guilting him into letting her have her way. Both want to keep the man she loves close to herself, but neither are willing to openly return his love. The great difference in them is that Sue knows what she is doing is wrong and Catherine does not.
Catherine lacks Sue's social awareness and emotional experience. She never once considers that her words might hurt Heathcliff, or that he should be jealous of her relationship with Edgar. Sue, however, knows quite well that her relationship with Phillstone will hurt Jude and tries to hide it from him. She knows that her fickle attitude and way of toying with his emotions hurts him greatly and that he will continue to love her anyway. She treats him like a pet, playing her games and knowing that he will never be able to stay away from her.
I see Sue as a cruel, wicked character. She may not intend to be malicious in her actions, but she does not stop herself from hurting Jude time and time again. Her heart is empty; she is incapable of giving herself to another in love. She guards her heart viciously. I see Catherine as unfortunate, but innocent. Her world revolves only around herself and she is fully ignorant of how anything she does affects those around her.
I keep getting interrupted in trying to write this. I feel like I'm confusing myself and getting no where. I give up.
Update: 5/5/10
I have just transcribed this entry from my journal and can't help but adding something about Father Time. I don't remember the child's real name, but his eerie character is still vivid to me; he makes me shiver. The description of this little adult is so chilling. He is like something out of a horror movie. The events of his death and the deaths of his siblings is one of the most striking scenes I can recall ever having read. I won't go into the details or say much, but the only word I know to describe it is demented.
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