''Hard Times: For These Times'' (commonly known as ''Hard Times'') is the tenth novel by
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...
, first published in 1854. The book surveys English society and satirises the social and economic conditions of the era.
''Hard Times'' is unusual in several ways. It is by far the shortest of Dickens's novels, barely a quarter of the length of those written immediately before and after it. Also, unlike all but one of his other novels, ''Hard Times'' has neither a preface nor illustrations. Moreover, it is his only novel not to have scenes set in London. Instead the story is set in the fictitious
Victorian industrial Coketown, a generic Northern English mill-town, in some ways similar to
Manchester
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
, though smaller. Coketown may be partially based on 19th-century
Preston.
One of Dickens's reasons for writing ''Hard Times'' was that sales of his weekly periodical ''
Household Words
''Household Words'' was an English weekly magazine edited by Charles Dickens in the 1850s. It took its name from the line in Shakespeare's ''Henry V'': "Familiar in his mouth as household words."
History
During the planning stages, titles origi ...
'' were low, and it was hoped the novel's publication in instalments would boost circulation – as indeed proved to be the case. Since publication it has received a mixed response from critics. Critics such as
George Bernard Shaw
George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence simply as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from ...
and
Thomas Macaulay
Thomas Babington Macaulay, 1st Baron Macaulay, (; 25 October 1800 – 28 December 1859) was a British historian and Whig politician, who served as the Secretary at War between 1839 and 1841, and as the Paymaster-General between 1846 and 1 ...
have mainly focused on Dickens's treatment of trade unions and his post–
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...
pessimism regarding the divide between capitalist mill owners and undervalued workers during the Victorian era.
F. R. Leavis
Frank Raymond "F. R." Leavis (14 July 1895 – 14 April 1978) was an English literary critic of the early-to-mid-twentieth century. He taught for much of his career at Downing College, Cambridge, and later at the University of York.
Leavis ra ...
, a great admirer of the book, included it – but not Dickens's work as a whole – as part of his Great Tradition of English novels.
Publication
The novel was published as a serial in Dickens's weekly publication, ''
Household Words
''Household Words'' was an English weekly magazine edited by Charles Dickens in the 1850s. It took its name from the line in Shakespeare's ''Henry V'': "Familiar in his mouth as household words."
History
During the planning stages, titles origi ...
''. Sales were highly responsive and encouraging for Dickens who remarked that he was "Three parts mad, and the fourth delirious, with perpetual rushing at ''Hard Times''". The novel was serialised, in twenty weekly parts, between 1 April and 12 August 1854. It sold well, and a complete volume was published in August, totalling 110,000 words. Another related novel, ''
North and South North and South may refer to:
Literature
* ''North and South'' (Gaskell novel), an 1854 novel by Elizabeth Gaskell
* ''North and South'' (trilogy), a series of novels by John Jakes (1982–1987)
** ''North and South'' (Jakes novel), first novel ...
'' by
Elizabeth Gaskell
Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell (''née'' Stevenson; 29 September 1810 – 12 November 1865), often referred to as Mrs Gaskell, was an English novelist, biographer and short story writer. Her novels offer a detailed portrait of the lives of many st ...
, was also published in this magazine.
Synopsis
The novel follows a classical tripartite structure, and the titles of each book are related to ''Galatians'' 6:7, "For whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap." Book I is entitled "Sowing", Book II is entitled "Reaping", and the third is "Garnering."
Book I: Sowing
Superintendent
Mr. Gradgrind opens the novel at his school in Coketown stating, "Now, what I want is Facts. Teach these boys and girls nothing but Facts", and interrogates one of his pupils, Cecilia (nicknamed Sissy), whose father works at a circus. Because her father works with
horse
The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million y ...
s, Gradgrind demands the definition of a
horse
The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million y ...
. When she is scolded for her inability to factually define a horse, her classmate Bitzer gives a zoological profile, and Sissy is censured for suggesting that she would carpet a floor with pictures of flowers or horses.
Louisa and Thomas, two of Mr. Gradgrind's children, go after school to see the touring circus run by Mr. Sleary, only to meet their father, who orders them home. Mr. Gradgrind has three younger children: Adam Smith (after
the famous theorist of laissez-faire policy), Malthus (after Rev.
Thomas Malthus
Thomas Robert Malthus (; 13/14 February 1766 – 29 December 1834) was an English cleric, scholar and influential economist in the fields of political economy and demography.
In his 1798 book '' An Essay on the Principle of Population'', Mal ...
, who wrote ''An Essay on the Principle of Population'', warning of the dangers of future overpopulation), and Jane.
Josiah Bounderby, "a man perfectly devoid of sentiment", is revealed as Gradgrind's close friend. Bounderby is a manufacturer and mill owner who is affluent as a result of his
enterprise
Enterprise (or the archaic spelling Enterprize) may refer to:
Business and economics
Brands and enterprises
* Enterprise GP Holdings, an energy holding company
* Enterprise plc, a UK civil engineering and maintenance company
* Enterpris ...
and
capital
Capital may refer to:
Common uses
* Capital city, a municipality of primary status
** List of national capital cities
* Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences
* Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used f ...
. He often gives dramatic and falsified accounts of his childhood.
As they consider her a bad influence on the other children, Gradgrind and Bounderby prepare to dismiss Sissy from the school; but the two soon discover her father has abandoned her thereto, in hope that she will lead a better life without him. Mr. Gradgrind gives Sissy a choice: to return to the circus and its kindly manager, Mr. Sleary, and forfeit her education, or to continue her education and work for Mrs. Gradgrind, never returning to the circus. Sissy accepts the latter, hoping to be reunited with her father. At the Gradgrind house, Tom and Louisa befriend Sissy but they are all discontent with their strict upbringing.
Amongst the mill workers, known as "the Hands", is a gloomy man named Stephen Blackpool (nicknamed "Old Stephen"): another of the story's protagonists. When introduced, he has ended his day's work and meets his close friend Rachael. On entering his house he finds that his drunken wife – who has been living away from him – has made an unwelcome return. Stephen is greatly perturbed, and visits Bounderby to ask how he can legally end his marriage and marry Rachael. Mrs. Sparsit, Mr. Bounderby's housekeeper, disapproves of Stephen's query and Bounderby explains that ending a marriage would be complex and prohibitively costly. When Stephen points out the injustice of this, Bounderby accuses him of having ideas above his station. Leaving the house, Stephen meets an old woman who seems interested in Bounderby and says she visits Coketown once a year. Upon returning, he finds Rachael caring for his wife, and stays until three o'clock. When Rachael falls asleep, Mrs. Blackpool wakes up and mistakes a bottle of medicine for alcohol. Despite knowing that she will die if she drinks the entire bottle, Stephen does not move to stop her. Rachael wakes and is able to prevent Mrs. Blackpool from poisoning herself, and Stephen, horrified by his lack of action, finds strength and resolve to bear his suffering.
Several years pass. Sissy becomes Gradgrind's housekeeper, caring for his younger children. Gradgrind tells Louisa that Josiah Bounderby, 30 years her senior, has proposed marriage to her, and quotes statistics to prove that an age difference does not make a marriage unhappy or short. Louisa passively accepts the offer, and the newlyweds set out to Lyons (
Lyon
Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...
), where Bounderby wants to observe how labour is used in the factories there. Tom, her brother, elatedly bids her farewell.
Book 2: Reaping
Book Two opens on Bounderby's bank in Coketown, over which the "light porter", Sissy's old classmate Bitzer, and the austere Mrs. Sparsit keep watch at the afternoon. A well-dressed gentleman asks for directions to Bounderby's house, as Gradgrind has sent him from London with a letter of introduction. It is James Harthouse, who has tried several occupations and been bored by all of them.
Harthouse is introduced to Bounderby, who accepts him and then regales him with improbable and brief mentions of his childhood. Harthouse is utterly bored by him, but enamoured of the now-melancholy Louisa. Louisa's brother Tom works for Bounderby, and has become reckless and wayward in his conduct. Tom admires Harthouse, who holds him in some contempt, and Tom discloses contempt for Bounderby in the presence of Harthouse, who notes Louisa's affection for Tom and later learns that Tom has money problems – and that Tom persuaded Louisa to marry Bounderby to make his own life easier.
At a crowded union meeting, the agitator Slackbridge accuses Stephen Blackpool of treachery because he will not join the union, and Stephen learns he is to be '
sent to Coventry
To send someone to Coventry is an idiom used in England meaning to deliberately ostracise someone. Typically, this is done by not talking to them, avoiding their company, and acting as if they no longer exist. In essence, and by modern parlanc ...
' – shunned by all his fellow workers. Summoned by Bounderby, he is asked what the men are complaining of; and when Stephen tries to explain, Bounderby accuses Stephen of being a troublemaker and sacks him. Later Louisa and Tom visit Stephen, expressing regret, and Louisa gives him some money. Privately, Tom tells him to wait outside the bank after work.
When a robbery takes place at the bank, Stephen is suspected of the crime; even more so as he had left the town the next day. Mrs. Sparsit observes the advancing relationship between James Harthouse and Louisa, and suspects an adulterous liaison. Unable to hear their dialogue, she assumes the affair is progressing. When Harthouse confesses his love for Louisa, Louisa refuses him. They leave separately, and Mrs. Sparsit follows Louisa to the station, where Louisa boards a train to her father's house; Mrs Sparsit loses her. When Louisa arrives, she is in an extreme state of distress. Having argued that her rigorous education has stifled her ability to express her emotions, Louisa collapses at her father's feet in a dead faint.
Book 3: Garnering
At Bounderby's London hotel, Mrs. Sparsit gives him the news her surveillance has brought. Bounderby takes her back to Coketown and to Stone Lodge, where Louisa is resting. Gradgrind tells Bounderby that Louisa resisted Harthouse's advances, but has experienced a crisis and needs time to recover. Bounderby is immensely indignant and ill-mannered, especially towards Mrs. Sparsit for misleading him. Ignoring Gradgrind's pleas, he announces that unless Louisa returns to him the next day, the marriage will end. She does not come back.
Harthouse leaves Coketown after Sissy tells him never to return. As Slackbridge increasingly blackens Stephen Blackpool's name, Rachael goes to the bank to say she knows where he is, and that she will write asking him to return to Coketown to clear his name. Bounderby is suspicious when she tells him Stephen was visited by Louisa and Tom the night he was dismissed, and brings her to Gradgrind's house where Louisa confirms Rachael's account.
Mrs Sparsit eventually tracks down Mrs Pegler, the old woman who makes a mysterious annual visit to see Bounderby's house, and brings her to the house where she is revealed as Bounderby's mother. Far from having abandoned him to a life of hardship, she gave him a good upbringing and, when he became successful, allowed herself to be persuaded never to visit him. Bounderby is now publicly exposed as a ridiculous humbug 'bully of humility'.
On a Sunday outing, Rachael and Sissy find Stephen, who has fallen down an abandoned pit shaft while walking back to Coketown. He is rescued by villagers but, after professing his innocence and speaking to Rachael for the last time, he dies. Louisa and Sissy now suspect that Tom has committed the bank robbery, and simply told Stephen to loiter outside the bank in order to incriminate him. Sissy has already helped Tom escape by sending him to join Mr. Sleary's circus. Louisa and Sissy find Tom there, disguised in
blackface
Blackface is a form of theatrical makeup used predominantly by non-Black people to portray a caricature of a Black person.
In the United States, the practice became common during the 19th century and contributed to the spread of racial stereo ...
. Gradgrind arrives and despairs, and a plan is hatched with Sleary's co-operation to get Tom to Liverpool, where he can escape abroad. The plan is temporarily foiled by the arrival of Bitzer, who hopes to obtain promotion from Bounderby by bringing Tom to justice, but Sleary arranges an ambush and Tom is taken to Liverpool where he boards ship.
Bounderby punishes Mrs Sparsit for his humiliation by turning her out, but she doesn't particularly mind the dishonour. Five years later, he will die of a fit in the street, while Mr. Gradgrind, having abandoned his Utilitarian ideas and trying to make Facts "subservient to Faith, Hope and Charity", will suffer the contempt of his fellow MPs. Rachael will continue her life of honest hard work, while Stephen Blackpool will be pardoned by Mr Gradgrind. Tom will die from fever fairly near Coketown, having expressed penitence in a tear-stained letter. Louisa herself will grow old, but will never remarry and have children of her own. Louisa, showing kindness to the less fortunate and being loved by Sissy's children, will spend her life encouraging imagination and fancy in all she encounters.
Major characters
Mr. Gradgrind
Thomas Gradgrind is the notorious school board Superintendent, who is dedicated to the pursuit of profitable enterprise. His name is now used generically to refer to someone who is hard and only concerned with cold facts and numbers, a follower of
Utilitarian
In ethical philosophy, utilitarianism is a family of normative ethical theories that prescribe actions that maximize happiness and well-being for all affected individuals.
Although different varieties of utilitarianism admit different charac ...
ideas who neglects the imagination. He soon sees the error of these beliefs however, when his children's lives fall into disarray.
Mr. Bounderby
Josiah Bounderby is a business associate of Mr. Gradgrind. Given to boasting about being a self-made man, he employs many of the other central characters of the novel. He has risen to a position of power and wealth from humble origins (though not as humble as he claims). He marries Mr. Gradgrind's daughter Louisa, some 30 years his junior, in what turns out to be a loveless marriage. They have no children. Bounderby is callous, self-centred and ultimately revealed to be a liar and fraud.
Louisa
Louisa (Loo) Gradgrind, (later Louisa Bounderby), is the eldest child of the Gradgrind family. She has been taught to suppress her feelings and finds it hard to express herself clearly, saying as a child that she has "unmanageable thoughts." After her unhappy marriage, she is tempted to adultery by James Harthouse, but resists him and returns to her father. Her rejection of Harthouse leads to a new understanding of life and of the value of emotions and the imagination. She reproaches her father for his dry and fact-based approach to the world and convinces him of the error of his ways.
Sissy Jupe
Cecilia (Sissy) Jupe is a circus girl of Sleary's circus, as well as a student of Thomas Gradgrind's very strict classroom. Sissy has her own set of values and beliefs which make her seem unintelligent in the Gradgrind household. At the end of the novel, when the Gradgrinds' philosophy of religiously adhering solely to facts breaks down, Sissy is the character who teaches them how to live.
Sissy Jupe is first introduced to the readers as Girl Number Twenty in Gradgrind's classroom. She struggles to keep up with Gradgrind's extreme reliance on the recitation of facts, and therefore is seen as not worthy of the school. Sissy is also representative of creativity and wonderment because of her circus background, and those were things that the Gradgrind children were not allowed to engage in. With the urging of Josiah Bounderby, Mr. Gradgrind goes to inform Sissy's father that she can no longer attend his school.
Gradgrind and Bounderby arrive at the Pegasus' Arms, the Coketown public-house where Sissy, her father, and the rest of Sleary's circus were staying. While Sissy and her father were very close once, Mr. Jupe packed up and abandoned his daughter, leaving Sissy alone. In a moment of compassion, Mr. Gradgrind takes Sissy into his home and gives her a second chance at the school. Sissy continues to fall behind in the school, so Mr. Gradgrind keeps her at home to tend to his invalid wife.
While Sissy is the device of imagination and fantasy in the novel, she also serves as the voice of reason. The reason she cannot grasp the philosophy of Gradgrind's classroom is because she actually has a more realistic view of how the world should be perceived. After Louisa and Mr. Gradgrind come to terms with the fact that their way of life is not working, Sissy is the one they come to; she takes care of Louisa and helps her live a new, happy life.
Tom
Thomas (Tom) Gradgrind, Junior is the oldest son and second child of the Gradgrinds. Initially sullen and resentful of his father's Utilitarian education, Tom has a strong relationship with his sister Louisa. He works in Bounderby's bank (which he later robs), and turns to gambling and drinking. Louisa never ceases to adore Tom, and she aids Sissy and Mr. Gradgrind in saving her brother from arrest.
Stephen Blackpool
Stephen Blackpool is a worker at one of Bounderby's mills. He has a drunken wife who no longer lives with him but who appears from time to time. He forms a close bond with Rachael, a co-worker, whom he wishes to marry. After a dispute with Bounderby, he is dismissed from his work at the Coketown mills and, shunned by his former fellow workers, is forced to look for work elsewhere. While absent from Coketown, he is wrongly accused of robbing Bounderby's bank. On his way back to vindicate himself, he falls down a mine-shaft. He is rescued but dies of his injuries.
Other characters
Bitzer – is a very pale classmate of Sissy's who is brought up on facts and taught to operate according to self-interest. He takes up a job in Bounderby's bank, and later tries to arrest Tom.
Rachael – is the friend of Stephen Blackpool who attests to his innocence when he is accused of robbing Bounderby's bank by Tom. She is a factory worker, childhood friend of Blackpool's drunken and often absent wife, and becomes the literary tool for bringing the two parallel story lines together at the brink of Hell's Shaft in the final book.
Mrs. Sparsit – is a widow who has fallen on hard times. She is employed by Bounderby, and is jealous when he marries Louisa, delighting in the belief that Louisa is later about to elope with James Harthouse. Her machinations are unsuccessful and she is ultimately sacked by Bounderby.
James Harthouse – is an indolent, languid, upper-class gentleman, who attempts to woo Louisa.
Mrs. Gradgrind – the wife of Mr. Gradgrind, is an invalid who constantly complains. Tom Sr.'s apparent attraction to her is because she totally lacks 'fancy,' though she also appears to be unintelligent and without empathy for her children.
Mr. Sleary - the owner of the circus which employs Sissy's father. He speaks with a lisp. A kind man, he helps both Sissy and young Tom when they are in trouble.
Mrs. Pegler - an old woman who sometimes visits Coketown to observe the Bounderby estate. She is later revealed to be Bounderby's mother, proving his "rags-to-riches" story to be fraudulent.
Jane Gradgrind - a younger sister of Tom and Louisa Gradgrind who spends a lot of time with Sissy Jupe. She is cheerful, affectionate and despite looking similar to Louisa, in personality she is opposite.
Major themes
Dickens wished to educate readers about the working conditions of some of the factories in the industrial towns of
Manchester
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
, and
Preston, to "strike the heaviest blow in my power", and as well to confront the assumption that prosperity runs parallel to morality. This notion he systematically deconstructed through his portrayal of the moral monsters, Mr. Bounderby and James Harthouse. Dickens also believed in the importance of the imagination, and that people's lives should not be reduced to a collection of material facts and statistics. The description of the circus, which he describes as caring so "little for Plain Fact", is an example of this.
Utilitarianism
The
Utilitarians
In ethical philosophy, utilitarianism is a family of normative ethical theories that prescribe actions that maximize happiness and well-being for all affected individuals.
Although different varieties of utilitarianism admit different charact ...
were one of the targets of Dickens's satire.
Utilitarianism
In ethical philosophy, utilitarianism is a family of normative ethical theories that prescribe actions that maximize happiness and well-being for all affected individuals.
Although different varieties of utilitarianism admit different charact ...
was a prevalent school of thought during this period, its founders being
Jeremy Bentham
Jeremy Bentham (; 15 February 1748 Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates">O.S._4_February_1747.html" ;"title="Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="nowiki/>Old Style and New Style dates">O.S. 4 February 1747">Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.htm ...
and
James Mill
James Mill (born James Milne; 6 April 1773 – 23 June 1836) was a Scottish historian, economist, political theorist, and philosopher. He is counted among the founders of the Ricardian school of economics. He also wrote ''The History of Brit ...
, father to political theorist
John Stuart Mill
John Stuart Mill (20 May 1806 – 7 May 1873) was an English philosopher, political economist, Member of Parliament (MP) and civil servant. One of the most influential thinkers in the history of classical liberalism, he contributed widely to ...
.
Bentham's former secretary,
Edwin Chadwick
Sir Edwin Chadwick KCB (24 January 18006 July 1890) was an English social reformer who is noted for his leadership in reforming the Poor Laws in England and instituting major reforms in urban sanitation and public health. A disciple of Uti ...
, helped design the
Poor Law of 1834, which deliberately made workhouse life as uncomfortable as possible. In the novel, this attitude is conveyed in Bitzer's response to Gradgrind's appeal for compassion.
Dickens was appalled by what he saw as a selfish philosophy, which was combined with materialist ''laissez-faire'' capitalism in the education of some children at the time, as well as in industrial practices. In Dickens's interpretation, the prevalence of utilitarian values in educational institutions promoted contempt between mill owners and workers, creating young adults whose imaginations had been neglected, due to an over-emphasis on facts at the expense of more imaginative pursuits.
Dickens wished to satirise radical Utilitarians whom he described in a letter to
Charles Knight as "see
ngfigures and averages, and nothing else." He also wished to campaign for reform of
working conditions {{Short description, 1=Overview of and topical guide to working time and conditions
This is a list of topics on working time and conditions.
Legislation
* See :Employment law
Working time
* See :Working time
* Flextime
Working conditions
* Bios ...
. Dickens had visited factories in
Manchester
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
as early as 1839, and was appalled by the environment in which workers toiled. Drawing upon his own childhood experiences, Dickens resolved to "strike the heaviest blow in my power" for those who laboured in horrific conditions.
John Stuart Mill had a similar, rigorous education to that of Louisa Gradgrind, consisting of analytical, logical, mathematical, and statistical exercises. In his twenties, Mill had a nervous breakdown, believing his capacity for emotion had been enervated by his father's stringent emphasis on analysis and mathematics in his education. In the book, Louisa herself follows a parallel course, being unable to express herself and falling into a temporary depression as a result of her dry education.
Fact vs. Fancy
The bastion of fact is the eminently practical Mr. Gradgrind, and his model school, which teaches nothing but "
Fact
A fact is a datum about one or more aspects of a circumstance, which, if accepted as true and proven true, allows a logical conclusion to be reached on a true–false evaluation. Standard reference works are often used to check facts. Scient ...
s". Any
imaginative
Imagination is the production or simulation of novel objects, sensations, and ideas in the mind without any immediate input of the senses. Stefan Szczelkun characterises it as the forming of experiences in one's mind, which can be re-creations ...
or
aesthetic
Aesthetics, or esthetics, is a branch of philosophy that deals with the nature of beauty and taste, as well as the philosophy of art (its own area of philosophy that comes out of aesthetics). It examines aesthetic values, often expressed th ...
subjects are absent from the curriculum, and analysis, deduction and mathematics are emphasised. Fancy, the opposite of Fact, is epitomised by Sleary's circus. Sleary is reckoned a fool by Gradgrind and Bounderby, but it is Sleary who understands that people must be amused. Sissy, the circus performer's daughter, does badly at school, failing to remember the many facts she is taught, but is genuinely virtuous and fulfilled. Gradgrind's own son Tom revolts against his upbringing, and becomes a gambler and a thief, while Louisa becomes emotionally stunted, virtually
soul
In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being".
Etymology
The Modern English noun ''soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest attes ...
less both as a young child and as an unhappily married woman. Bitzer, who adheres to Gradgrind's teachings, becomes an uncompassionate
egotist
Egotism is defined as the drive to maintain and enhance favorable views of oneself and generally features an inflated opinion of one's personal features and importance distinguished by a person's amplified vision of one's self and self-importan ...
.
Officiousness and spying
Mr. Bounderby spends his whole time fabricating stories about his childhood, covering up the real nature of his upbringing, which is revealed at the end of the novel. While not a snooper himself, he is undone by Sparsit unwittingly revealing the mysterious old woman to be his own mother, and she unravels Josiah's secrets about his upbringing and fictitious stories. Mr. Bounderby himself superintends through calculating tabular statements and statistics, and is always secretly rebuking the people of Coketown for indulging in conceitful activities. This gives Bounderby a sense of superiority, as it does with Mrs. Sparsit, who prides herself on her salacious knowledge gained from spying on others. Bounderby's grasp for superiority is seen in Blackpool's talks to Bounderby regarding
divorce
Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...
proceedings and a union movement at his factory, accusing him that he is on a quest 'to feast on turtle soup and venison, served with a golden spoon.' All "superintendents" of the novel are undone in one way or another.
Morality
Dickens portrays the wealthy in this novel as being morally corrupt. Bounderby has no moral scruples, and, for example, fires Blackpool "for a novelty". He also conducts himself without any shred of decency, frequently losing his temper. He is cynically false about his childhood. Harthouse, a leisured gent, is compared to an "iceberg" who will cause a wreck unwittingly, due to him being "not a moral sort of fellow", as he states himself. Stephen Blackpool, a destitute worker, is equipped with perfect morals, always abiding by his promises, and always thoughtful and considerate of others, as is Sissy Jupe.
The role of status on morality
Dickens is also concerned, throughout ''Hard Times'', with the effects of social class on the morality of individuals. Some contrasting characters relating to this theme are Stephen and Rachel, and Tom and Mr. Bounderby. Stephen's honesty and Rachel's caring actions are qualities not shown in people from higher classes, but among hard working individuals who are browbeaten by the uncaring factory owners such as Bounderby. These qualities appear repeatedly, as Stephen works hard every day, until he decides to leave town to save the names of his fellow workers, and Rachel supports Stephen through this, while struggling to provide for herself as well. In contrast to these behaviours, Mr. Bounderby refuses to recognise the difficulties faced by those in lower classes, as seen by him completely casting aside Stephen's request for help. Other aristocratic characters simply carry out blatantly immoral actions, such as Tom throwing away his sister's money, falling into debt, then robbing a bank, and even framing someone else for his actions. Tom is also seen to be deceitful as he is able to keep his guilt hidden until the evidence points only toward him. On the contrary, when the news comes out that Stephen had robbed the bank, Stephen begins to head back to Coketown to face his problems and clear his name. Overall, the stark difference in morality between characters of dissimilar social status suggests Dickens's idea that there is a form of innate natural law that may remain unhampered in those leading less titled lives. Stephen's concept of right and wrong is untainted by the manufactured values of utilitarianism, instilled into Tom and Bounderby.
Literary significance and criticism
Critics
A critic is a person who communicates an assessment and an opinion of various forms of creative works such as art, literature, music, cinema, theater, fashion, architecture, and food. Critics may also take as their subject social or governme ...
have had diverse opinions on the novel.
John Ruskin
John Ruskin (8 February 1819 20 January 1900) was an English writer, philosopher, art critic and polymath of the Victorian era. He wrote on subjects as varied as geology, architecture, myth, ornithology, literature, education, botany and politi ...
declared ''Hard Times'' to be his favourite Dickens work due to its exploration of important social questions. However,
Thomas Macaulay
Thomas Babington Macaulay, 1st Baron Macaulay, (; 25 October 1800 – 28 December 1859) was a British historian and Whig politician, who served as the Secretary at War between 1839 and 1841, and as the Paymaster-General between 1846 and 1 ...
branded it "sullen socialism", on the grounds that Dickens did not fully comprehend the politics of the time.
Edwin Percy Whipple
Edwin Percy Whipple (March 8, 1819 – June 16, 1886) was an American essayist and critic.
Biography
He was born in Gloucester, Massachusetts in 1819. For a time, he was the main literary critic for Philadelphia-based ''Graham's Magazine''. Lat ...
criticized the novel in
Scribner's Magazine
''Scribner's Magazine'' was an American periodical published by the publishing house of Charles Scribner's Sons from January 1887 to May 1939. ''Scribner's Magazine'' was the second magazine out of the Scribner's firm, after the publication of ' ...
by saying, "'Hard Times' is a satire on political economy, of which Dickens knew little, and the little he did know offended his benevolent feelings..." as he believed Dickens' criticisms of a utilitarian education were misguided.
George Bernard Shaw
George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence simply as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from ...
argued ''Hard Times'' to be a novel of "passionate revolt against the whole industrial order of the modern world". But he criticized the novel for failing to provide an accurate account of
trade unionism
A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...
of the time, arguing that Slackbridge, the poisonous orator, was "a mere figment of middle-class imagination". Believing that it was very different from Dickens's other novels, Shaw also said: "Many readers find the change disappointing. Others find Dickens worth reading almost for the first time."
F. R. Leavis
Frank Raymond "F. R." Leavis (14 July 1895 – 14 April 1978) was an English literary critic of the early-to-mid-twentieth century. He taught for much of his career at Downing College, Cambridge, and later at the University of York.
Leavis ra ...
, in ''The Great Tradition'', described the book as essentially a moral fable, and that 'of all Dickens's works (it is) the one that has all the strengths of his genius – that of a completely serious work of art'. This, however, was a view which he later revised in ''Dickens the Novelist'', which recognised that Dickens's strengths and artistry appeared fully in other works.
Walter Allen
Walter Ernest Allen (23 February 1911 – 28 February 1995) was an English literary critic and novelist and one of the Birmingham Group of authors. He is best known for his classic study ''The English Novel: a Short Critical History'' (1951).
...
characterised ''Hard Times'' as being an unsurpassed "critique of industrial society", which was later superseded by works of
D. H. Lawrence
David Herbert Lawrence (11 September 1885 – 2 March 1930) was an English writer, novelist, poet and essayist. His works reflect on modernity, industrialization, sexuality, emotional health, vitality, spontaneity and instinct. His best-k ...
. Other writers have described the novel as being, as
G. K. Chesterton commented in his work ''Appreciations and Criticisms'', "the harshest of his stories"; whereas
George Orwell
Eric Arthur Blair (25 June 1903 – 21 January 1950), better known by his pen name George Orwell, was an English novelist, essayist, journalist, and critic. His work is characterised by lucid prose, social criticism, opposition to totalitar ...
praised the novel (and Dickens himself) for "generous anger".
Adaptations
The novel was adapted as a 1915 silent film, ''
Hard Times'', directed by
Thomas Bentley
Thomas Bentley (23 February 1884 – 23 December 1966) was a British film director. He directed 68 films between 1912 and 1941. He directed three films in the early DeForest Phonofilm sound-on-film process, ''The Man in the Street'' (1926), '' ...
.
In 1988 Portuguese director
João Botelho
João Manuel Relvas Leopoldo Botelho (born 1949) is a Portuguese film director.
He has directed and written the screenplays of numerous films. His films have won several awards. His works have been nominated for the Venice Film Festival's Golde ...
adapted the novel to the big screen in ''
Hard Times'' (shot entirely in black & white) transferring the action to an unspecified industrial Portuguese city of the 1980s.
''Hard Times'' has been adapted twice for BBC Radio, first in 1998 starring
John Woodvine
John Woodvine (born 21 July 1929) is an English actor who has appeared in more than 70 theatre productions, as well as a similar number of television and film roles.
Early life
Woodvine was born in Tyne Dock, South Shields, Tyne & Wear, Englan ...
as Gradgrind,
Tom Baker
Thomas Stewart Baker (born 20 January 1934) is an English actor and writer. He is well known for his portrayal of the Fourth Doctor, fourth incarnation of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor in the science fiction television series ''Doctor Wh ...
as Josiah Bounderby and
Anna Massey
Anna Raymond Massey (11 August 19373 July 2011) was an English actress. She won a BAFTA Award for the role of Edith Hope in the 1986 TV adaptation of Anita Brookner's novel ''Hotel du Lac'', a role that one of her co-stars, Julia McKenzie, h ...
as Mrs. Sparsit, and again in 2007 starring
Kenneth Cranham
Kenneth Cranham (born 12 December 1944) is a Scottish film, television, radio and stage actor.
Early life
Cranham was born in Dunfermline, Fife, the son of Lochgelly-born Margaret McKay Cranham (née Ferguson) and Ronald Cranham, a London-born ...
as Gradgrind,
Philip Jackson as Bounderby,
Alan Williams as Stephen,
Becky Hindley
Rebecca "Becky" Hindley (born 11 August 1965) is an English television, stage and radio actress based in Lancaster, England. She is best known for her eight-month stint in ''Coronation Street'' as Charlotte Hoyle in 2010; her performance as the ...
as Rachael,
Helen Longworth
Helen Longworth (born 11 December 1976 in Preston, Lancashire) is a British actress.
She has appeared in many radio plays including playing the character of Zofia in six series of ''On Mardle Fen'', Susie Dean in ''The Good Companions'' and Mari ...
as Louisa,
Richard Firth as Tom and
Eleanor Bron
Eleanor Bron (born 14 March 1938) is an English stage, film and television actress, and an author. Her film roles include Ahme in the Beatles musical ''Help!'' (1965), the Doctor in '' Alfie'' (1966), Margaret Spencer in '' Bedazzled'' (1967), a ...
as Mrs. Sparsit.
In the theatre, ''Hard Times'' was adapted for the stage by Michael O'Brien and directed by
Marti Maraden
Marti Maraden (born June 22, 1945 in El Centro, California) is a Canadian actor and director.
She emigrated to Canada in 1968, and became a leading actor at the Stratford Festival in the 1970s.
She was artistic director of the National Arts Cen ...
at Canada's
National Arts Centre
The National Arts Centre (NAC) (french: Centre national des Arts) is a Arts centre, performing arts organisation in Ottawa, Ontario, along the Rideau Canal. It is based in the eponymous National Arts Centre (building), National Arts Centre build ...
in 2000. In 2018
Northern Broadsides
Northern Broadsides is a theatre company formed in 1992 and based at Dean Clough Mill in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England. It was founded by Barrie Rutter, who was its Artistic Director until resigning in 2018, followed by Conrad Nelson who was i ...
toured an adaptation written by
Deb McAndrew and directed by
Conrad Nelson
Conrad Nelson (born 1963) is a British actor, composer and musical director, and was Artistic Director of the Northern Broadsides company until 2019.
His acting roles have included Iago in the Northern Broadsides production of ''Othello'' when L ...
.
The novel has also been adapted twice as a mini-series for British television,
once in 1977 by
ITV
ITV or iTV may refer to:
ITV
*Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of:
** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...
with
Patrick Allen
John Keith Patrick Allen (17 March 1927 – 28 July 2006) was a British actor.
Life and career
Allen was born in Nyasaland (now Malawi), where his father was a tobacco farmer. After his parents returned to Britain, he was evacuated to Canada ...
as Gradgrind,
Timothy West
Timothy Lancaster West, CBE (born 20 October 1934) is an English actor and presenter. He has appeared frequently on both stage and television, including stints in both ''Coronation Street'' (as Eric Babbage) and ''EastEnders'' (as Stan Carter) ...
as Bounderby,
Rosalie Crutchley
Rosalie Sylvia Crutchley (4 January 1920 – 28 July 1997) was a British actress. Trained at the Royal Academy of Music, Crutchley was perhaps best known for her television performances, but had a long and successful career in theatre and films, ...
as Mrs. Sparsit and
Edward Fox as Harthouse, and again in 1994 by the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
as Mrs. Sparsit,
as Harthouse.
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PDF scan of entire novel as it appeared in ''Household Words''
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