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Synopsis

Coketown is dominated by the figure of Mr Thomas Gradgrind, school headmaster and model of Utilitarian success. Feeding both his pupils and family with facts, he bans fancy and wonder from any young minds. As a consequence his obedient daughter Louisa marries the loveless businessman and 'bully of humanity' Mr Bounderby, and his son Tom rebels to become embroiled in gambling and robbery. And, as their fortunes cross with those of free-spirited circus girl Sissy Jupe and victimized weaver Stephen Blackpool, Gradgrind is eventually forced to recognize the value of the human heart in an age of materialism and machinery.

Reviews

Customer Review: 21 June 2008

Reviewer: Abraham Lee

'In this Victorian-era satire of Utilitarianism, Charles Dickens masterfully writes of events in peoples´ lives that everyone will at one time or another will experience. This timeless classic has inspired me and would surely inspire many others for years to come. Hard Times is set in a fictitious industrial town named Coketown. This town is home to our main character, Mr Thomas Gradgrind. He is a headmaster at a primary school that teaches nothing but facts. Neither truths nor ´Fancy´ were allowed in his dreary school. Instead, analyzing, statistics, logic and facts were drilled into the impressionable young minds. Basically, what he aimed to do was to mechanize his students into dull beings with utterly no emotion ´ just like Coketown. He also strongly believes that if he exterminates all emotion in his children, they will be happier people. The story unravels how this deprivation in both Gradgrind´s students and children can cause one to turn into an empty shell. It tells of the sorrow of this empty shell as she realizes that she has forgotten how to love. It tells of how this deprivation can twist one´s mind to lead its body into bankruptcy and robbery. It tells of how salvation was earned thanks to one student who stood up for ´Fancy´ and defeated the deprivation. And finally it ends with a letter for penitence. Readers can agree that contrary to popular belief, we can judge this book by its cover. This cover shows a pair of worn and sooty hands that seem to be praying. In these hands, I see the hardships and despairs of the people of Dickens´ time. From them and the book, I have learnt many life lessons and if you have also read it, I´m sure you would have too. However whatever you may have learnt, you must at least learn this one lesson. In essence, this book teaches us to value the human heart. There is absolutely no need to be caught up in arguments about whether the things that Dickens had said about Utilitarianism were true or false. The theme is merely a medium through which this lesson has been taught. Of course, logic and facts are terribly important but we can never barter truth and hearts for these. '

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