Appearance
Excerpt
Excerpt from Jude the Obscure, by Thomas Hardy
“Well ye med ask it, Mrs. Williams. He’s my great-nephew—come since you
was last this way.” The old inhabitant who answered was a tall, gaunt
woman, who spoke tragically on the most trivial subject, and gave a
phrase of her conversation to each auditor in turn. “He come from
Mellstock, down in South Wessex, about a year ago—worse luck for ’n,
Belinda” (turning to the right) “where his father was living, and was
took wi’ the shakings for death, and died in two days, as you know,
Caroline” (turning to the left). “It would ha’ been a blessing if
Goddy-mighty had took thee too, wi’ thy mother and father, poor useless
boy! But I’ve got him here to stay with me till I can see what’s to be
done with un, though I am obliged to let him earn any penny he can.
Just now he’s a-scaring of birds for Farmer Troutham. It keeps him out
of mischty. Why do ye turn away, Jude?” she continued, as the boy,
feeling the impact of their glances like slaps upon his face, moved
aside.
The local washerwoman replied that it was perhaps a very good plan of
Miss or Mrs. Fawley’s (as they called her indifferently) to have him
with her—“to kip ’ee company in your loneliness, fetch water, shet the
winder-shetters o’ nights, and help in the bit o’ baking.”
Miss Fawley doubted it. … “Why didn’t ye get the schoolmaster to take
’ee to Christminster wi’ un, and make a scholar of ’ee,” she continued,
in frowning pleasantry. “I’m sure he couldn’t ha’ took a better one.
The boy is crazy for books, that he is. It runs in our family rather.
His cousin Sue is just the same—so I’ve heard; but I have not seen the
child for years, though she was born in this place, within these four
walls, as it happened. My niece and her husband, after they were
married, didn’ get a house of their own for some year or more; and then
they only had one till—Well, I won’t go into that. Jude, my child,
don’t you ever marry. ’Tisn’t for the Fawleys to take that step any
more. She, their only one, was like a child o’ my own, Belinda, till
the split come! Ah, that a little maid should know such changes!”
Explanation
Detailed Explanation of the Excerpt from Jude the Obscure by Thomas Hardy
Context of the Source
Jude the Obscure (1895) is Thomas Hardy’s last completed novel and one of his most controversial works. Set in the fictional region of Wessex (Hardy’s imagined version of southwestern England), the novel follows Jude Fawley, a working-class stonemason with intellectual aspirations, who dreams of attending Christminster (a stand-in for Oxford). The novel explores themes of social class, fate, marriage, religion, and the crushing of human ambition by an indifferent universe.
This excerpt introduces young Jude as a boy living with his great-aunt, Drusilla Fawley, in the village of Marygreen. The scene establishes Jude’s isolated, unloved upbringing and the pessimistic, fatalistic outlook that will shape his life. The conversation also foreshadows key themes: the destructive nature of marriage, the burden of family legacy, and the futility of aspiration in a rigid class system.
Breakdown of the Excerpt
1. The Speaker: Drusilla Fawley (Jude’s Great-Aunt)
- Characterization: She is a tall, gaunt, tragic figure who speaks in a dramatic, almost theatrical manner, addressing different listeners in turn ("Belinda," "Caroline"). Her speech is bitter, fatalistic, and superstitious, reflecting Hardy’s view of rural life as harsh and governed by blind fate.
- Attitude Toward Jude: She sees him as a burden ("poor useless boy") and wishes he had died with his parents. Yet, she keeps him out of moral obligation, not affection. Her cynicism about marriage ("’Tisn’t for the Fawleys to take that step any more") foreshadows Jude’s later disastrous relationships.
2. Jude’s Situation
- Orphaned and Unwanted: Jude’s parents died suddenly ("the shakings for death"), leaving him in the care of an aunt who resents his existence. His only role is to scare birds for Farmer Troutham—a menial, demeaning job that symbolizes his trapped, powerless position in society.
- Shame and Isolation: When the women stare at him, Jude flinches "like slaps upon his face", showing his sensitivity and vulnerability. He is already an outcast, marked by poverty and intellectual longing in a world that has no place for him.
- Intellectual Yearning: The aunt mentions that Jude is "crazy for books"—a trait that runs in the family (his cousin Sue is the same). This love of learning will define Jude’s life, but it will also destroy him, as his ambitions are repeatedly thwarted by class barriers and bad luck.
3. The Washerwoman’s Response
- Practical Justification: The washerwoman suggests that Jude is useful—fetching water, shutting windows, helping with baking. This utilitarian view of the boy reinforces the idea that the poor are only valued for labor, not as individuals with dreams.
- Irony: Her optimistic take ("a very good plan") contrasts with Drusilla’s bitterness, highlighting the harsh reality of Jude’s life. The washerwoman’s indifferent use of "Miss or Mrs. Fawley" also suggests that social status is fluid and meaningless in rural poverty.
4. The Aunt’s Warning About Marriage
- "Don’t you ever marry": This is one of the most thematically significant lines in the novel. Drusilla’s warning stems from her niece’s failed marriage (Jude’s aunt, who died tragically). Marriage, in Hardy’s world, is not a sacred bond but a trap—one that will later ruin Jude and Sue.
- Fate and Family Curse: The Fawleys are doomed by their bloodline—their passions and intellectualism make them unfit for conventional happiness. This reflects Hardy’s deterministic view that heredity and environment control human lives.
5. The Mention of Sue Bridehead
- Foreshadowing: Sue, Jude’s cousin, is introduced as another "book-crazy" Fawley, suggesting a shared fate. Their eventual tragic relationship will be central to the novel.
- Birth in the Same House: The detail that Sue was born "within these four walls" reinforces the inescapability of the past—Jude and Sue are bound by blood and circumstance, unable to break free from their family’s cursed history.
Key Themes in the Excerpt
Fate and Determinism
- Jude is born into poverty and misfortune, with no real chance to escape. His aunt’s bitter fatalism ("worse luck for ’n") sets the tone for the novel’s tragic inevitability.
- The family curse (failed marriages, intellectual longing) suggests that Jude’s suffering is preordained.
Class and Social Mobility
- Jude’s love of books is useless in his world—he is trapped in manual labor (scaring birds). The mention of Christminster (Oxford) is ironic because he will never attend, no matter how hard he tries.
- The washerwoman’s practical view of Jude as a laborer reinforces the impossibility of upward mobility for the rural poor.
The Destructiveness of Marriage
- The aunt’s warning against marriage foreshadows Jude’s disastrous relationships (with Arabella and Sue).
- Marriage is portrayed as a source of suffering, not happiness—another way society crushes individuals.
Isolation and Alienation
- Jude is physically and emotionally alone—his aunt doesn’t love him, the villagers stare at him with pity, and he has no real future.
- His intellectual aspirations only deepen his isolation, as he is misunderstood and resented by those around him.
Nature as Indifferent or Hostile
- The sudden death of Jude’s parents ("the shakings for death") suggests a cruel, unpredictable world.
- The harsh rural life (scaring birds, manual labor) shows that survival is a struggle, not a given.
Literary Devices
Dramatic Irony
- The reader knows (or suspects) that Jude’s dreams will be crushed, but he does not. His aunt’s cynical remarks ("crazy for books") are prophetic—his intellect will lead to his ruin.
Foreshadowing
- The warning about marriage predicts Jude’s failed relationships.
- The mention of Sue Bridehead sets up their tragic connection.
- The aunt’s bitterness foreshadows the novel’s bleak ending.
Symbolism
- Scaring birds: Represents Jude’s futile efforts to control his fate—he is chasing away his own hopes.
- Books: Symbolize forbidden knowledge and unattainable dreams.
- The "four walls": Represent the inescapable past—Jude and Sue are trapped by their family’s history.
Realism & Naturalism
- Hardy’s gritty, unromantic portrayal of rural life reflects Naturalism—humans are subject to forces beyond their control (poverty, heredity, fate).
- The dialect and colloquial speech ("wi’ thy mother and father," "kip ’ee company") ground the scene in realism, making the characters’ suffering more immediate.
Tragic Tone
- The aunt’s lament ("Ah, that a little maid should know such changes!") sets a mournful, elegy-like tone, preparing the reader for the novel’s tragic arc.
Significance of the Excerpt
This opening scene establishes the novel’s central conflicts:
- Jude’s intellectual aspirations vs. his social reality.
- The weight of family history and fate.
- The cruelty of a world that offers no mercy to the poor or the dreamers.
Hardy critiques Victorian society’s hypocrisy—its false promises of mobility, its oppressive marriage laws, and its indifference to the suffering of the lower classes. Jude’s story is not just personal but symbolic—he represents everyman crushed by an uncaring universe.
The excerpt also introduces Hardy’s philosophical pessimism:
- Human life is governed by blind chance (Jude’s parents dying suddenly).
- Institutions (marriage, class, religion) are oppressive.
- Intellect and passion are curses, not blessings, in a world that rewards conformity and punishes individuality.
Conclusion
This passage is a microcosm of the entire novel—it introduces Jude’s tragic flaw (his dreams), the hostile world he lives in, and the inescapable fate that will destroy him. Hardy’s bleak realism, symbolic depth, and fatalistic tone make Jude the Obscure one of the most powerful indictments of Victorian society and a timeless exploration of human suffering.
Jude’s story is not just about one man’s failure, but about the universal struggle against forces beyond our control—whether they be class, heredity, or an indifferent cosmos.