Hard Times - Chiltern Classics Hardback
"Do the wise thing and the kind thing too, and make the best of us and not the worst.” Hard Times, 1854
'Hard Times' is Charles Dickens' social and moral critique of industrial England, set in the fictional manufacturing town of Coketown, a polluted and suffering place with smoke-filled factories and soulless workers who have been downtrodden by the cruel and heartless Thomas Gradgrind and Josiah Bounderby. Thomas Gradgrind, a stern schoolmaster, believes only in rational education, thereby suppressing imagination and emotion. Tom and Louisa, his two children, are raised under this philosophy, which only brings them misery, Louisa enters a loveless marriage with the wealthy mill owner Josiah Bounderby, while Tom becomes a selfish and bitter gambler who ultimately turns criminal. Through contrasts between fact and fancy, wealth and poverty, and logic and love, Dickens condemns the mechanical, profit-driven values of Victorian society and advocates for empathy, imagination, and humanity. The novel was published to mixed criticism, with many feeling at the time that it was too distressing.
With this Chiltern Classic Edition of 'Hard Times' you are owning one of Charles Dickens' most famous novels presented in a beautiful hardback cover. Each book is embossed with a stunning design and each page delicately edged in gold paint. There are many cover versions of this novel but we feel sure that this hardback version of 'Hard Times' will stand out on your bookcase and become a cherished part of your book collection.
Hardback 2023
344 pages
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