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Jude The Obscure
- Letto da: Stephen Thorne
- Durata: 15 ore e 21 min
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Jude The Obscure
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Eager to escape the confines of his lower-class upbringing, Jude Fawley dreams of pursuing higher education, graduating from university and becoming a scholar. Slowly, we witness the resistance Jude is met with and, in keeping with Hardy's other works, the consequences of having dared to defy a society with long-held traditions.
Thomas Hardy's last novel, Jude the Obscure, offers scathing commentary and insight into 19th century England. Widely considered Hardy's boldest and most avant-garde work, it was first published in serialised form, sending weekly shockwaves of outrage to its Victorian audiences. Despite being an able and driven young man, Jude's potential is squandered and his aspirations quashed when he relents and becomes a stonemason. Grounded by an unhappy marriage and a lack of opportunity, Jude's only escape comes in the form of his beloved cousin, Sue Bridehead. An unconventional yet extraordinary heroine, Sue becomes Jude's only chance at happiness, but in a society so unwilling to accept change, their love becomes their undoing.
One of the most influential and prolific novelists and poets of the 19th and early 20th centuries, Thomas Hardy followed the naturalist movement and was greatly inspired by the works of Charles Dickens and William Wordsworth. In turn, his work enthused the likes of Robert Frost, W.H. Auden and Philip Larkin.
Narrator Biography
Stephen Thorne is a classically-trained radio, film, stage and television actor. He graduated from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts and has toured with The Old Vic Company and the Royal Shakespeare Company. His voice experience is extensive and he is credited with over 2000 radio broadcasts and 300 unabridged audiobooks. These include works by James Henry, Dick King-Smith, Arthur Conan-Doyle and F. Scott Fitzgerald.
Stephen famously voiced the character of Aslan in the 1979 adaptation of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. His unique narration style has won him various awards in both the UK and the USA, including a Talkies Award and several Golden Earphones Awards from Audiofile Magazine.
Stephen is no stranger to the screen and his television roles include Z-Cars, Death of an Expert Witness, David Copperfield, Crossroads, Last of the Summer Wine and Doctor Who. He also appeared in the 1984 film, Runaway and the 1985 film, Lollipop Dragon: The Great Christmas Race.
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Valutazione media degli utenti. Nota: solo i clienti che hanno ascoltato il titolo possono lasciare una recensioneRecensioni - seleziona qui sotto per cambiare la provenienza delle recensioni.
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Generale5 out of 5 stars
- Tad Davis
- 16/02/2010
Staggering
I first read this book about 40 years ago, and coming back to it now, with Stephen Thorne's wonderful narration, I feel the same sense of overwhelming tragedy. The climax of the book is shattering.
Jude is a country laborer with a dream, and with patience and determination to match. He teaches himself Greek and Latin while supporting himself as a stonemason, and he hopes to become a fellow at the University. But one thing after another happens, and his opportunities become more and more constricted. Personal drama takes center stage. He falls in love with his cousin Sue, a relationship doomed not only by his own prior entanglements but by Sue's own indecisiveness and apparent horror at physical expressions of love. (There's something damaged about Sue that Hardy never tries to explain: it just is.)
Stephen Thorne is a terrific reader: all characters distinctively voiced in a variety of accents, with the brooding narrator hovering over all. Enthralling throughout: but be forewarned that it ends badly for pretty much everybody you care about.
13 persone l'hanno trovata utile
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Generale1 out of 5 stars
- Julia
- 20/09/2009
Thomas Hardy would never have wanted this narrator
I love this book, and have loved it since I was a teenager dreaming of how Jude and I would have been soulmates, but this narrator is the worst! His deadpan, inflectionless reading of this heartrending text is unlistenable-too. I had to stop. Poor Jude, he was sounding as exciting as last year's weather report. Oh my, what a lost opportunity to bring a fantastic novel to life!
6 persone l'hanno trovata utile
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Generale3 out of 5 stars
- Deb Dake
- 17/03/2009
It kept me engaged...
I thought the narrator was good as far as creating the environment but his portrayal of the female characters is weak and kept slightly pulling me out of the story. Not enough, however, to bring me to quitting it all together. I don't regret the time spent on the book.
3 persone l'hanno trovata utile
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Generale5 out of 5 stars
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Lettura5 out of 5 stars
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Storia5 out of 5 stars
- Natalie Bartels
- 23/12/2016
A truly complex and lovely tragedy
If you could sum up Jude The Obscure in three words, what would they be?
Lovely tragic novel
What was one of the most memorable moments of Jude The Obscure?
Jude's foolish drunken scenes.
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
No, it would have been too rich
Any additional comments?
My first Hardy novel. Brilliant. Tragic. When I finished it, I had an overwhelming feeling of having participated in something so aesthetically rich and complex. Learned a a lot about myself by exploring these characters. Would recommend.
1 persona l'ha trovata utile
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Generale2 out of 5 stars
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Lettura5 out of 5 stars
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Storia2 out of 5 stars
- carol keith
- 18/05/2023
Abyssmal
It's a melodramatic soap opera (like a lot of Victorian novels); however, this is far worse because the characters are completely absurd, purposefully contriving to be miserable. Surprisingly, I made it through the entire thing, so perhaps I'm a masochist, just like these characters.
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Generale3 out of 5 stars
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Lettura4 out of 5 stars
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Storia3 out of 5 stars
- Benny Profane
- 20/04/2023
A romantic melodrama
Hardy is obviously a canonical writer. My personal take, though? He's sad, abbreviated Dickens.
While I've appreciated his other novels -- Mayor & Tess particularly -- this one is tough to take. For one, I didn't particularly like any character. Second, speaking of characters... Sue is insufferable.
Third, there are way too many unfortunate coincidences that push the plot forward.
About 37 million people lived in England in the 1890s. There's no way four characters who live in different towns would so consistently just happen to run into each other over a decade.
And the tragic plot point that sends things spiraling is the highly intelligent (if insufferable) Sue spilling her guts to a random stranger (don't think that's a spoiler but... )
The lesson in this tale? While some want to talk about the unfair economics that prevent Jude from attending university, it's really about not being stupid when choosing a spouse. I kid you not... don't choose an incompatible, slightly nutty or unethical person to marry. Trust me on this.
And, really, Jude is kinda... lazy? As in: He writes some elders at the University asking for advice on how to get in and gets just one response which says, "Give it up." And he does. He made no real effort and showed no tenacity for pursuing his dream of academia. And he repeatedly abandons his work over and over because... he's sad?
I read this to check another box on my "Great Books" list. But unlike most of those, I finished with relief rather than intellectual or emotional elevation.
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Generale5 out of 5 stars
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Lettura4 out of 5 stars
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Storia4 out of 5 stars
- Jenny
- 09/04/2023
So sad
I felt so sad for Jude in this story. It’s hard to imagine a man loving such a tormenting and demanding woman, yet he loved her til his last breath. The ending left me sad and unfulfilled.
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Generale1 out of 5 stars
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Lettura1 out of 5 stars
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Storia1 out of 5 stars
- Katarzyna
- 02/03/2023
Pretentious book with a bunch of events and characters that seem untrue and schematic
A horribly fake and pompous story with absolutely unrealistic characters. I don’t recommend! Waste of nerves and time.
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Generale2 out of 5 stars
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Lettura5 out of 5 stars
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Storia2 out of 5 stars
- Scott Kleinfeld
- 20/01/2023
I wouldn't put it on my Most Depressing book list
Not sad enough for me. And I didn't like the second half soap opera.
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Generale5 out of 5 stars
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Lettura5 out of 5 stars
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Storia5 out of 5 stars
- BBWrighter
- 15/12/2022
I can’t believe I waited this long to read it
A stunning book by Hardy. I had to look up papers on whether Hardy liked or disliked women to have created such a story. I’m satisfied with the conclusion many have suggested that he loved strong, educated women but also feared them in the new changing world of late 1800s. I probably will read this again and small other Thomas Hardy books.
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Generale2 out of 5 stars
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Lettura1 out of 5 stars
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Storia5 out of 5 stars
- Genni Milesi
- 08/02/2016
Irritating in places
Would you try another book written by Thomas Hardy or narrated by Stephen Thorne?
I would try any book written by Thomas Hardy.
What did you like best about this story?
A great classic.
How did the narrator detract from the book?
As for the narrator, Stephen Thorne, his voice is very agreeable. Unfortunately, Thorne thinks it necessary to render the women's lines in a painfully querulous falsetto. The result strips the dialogue of credibility and drama. As someone put it on Twitter, it sounds as if the characters are being mocked, and/or infantilized. Pity. I recently listened to a great performance by Annette Bening, who never altered her voice when playing male characters, leaving the writing shine through.
What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?
I was pulled out of the story during most dialogues. Listening was particularly irritating when the narrator was supposed to convey a woman's strong emotion. But a few male characterizations suffered as well. Each time a character other than the protagonist speaks, Thorne has to send it up.
Any additional comments?
It seems to me that the narrator should resist the temptation to make a theatrical performance of a reading.
12 persone l'hanno trovata utile
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Generale4 out of 5 stars
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Lettura3 out of 5 stars
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Storia4 out of 5 stars
- Roly
- 28/04/2020
Powerful themes amongst pathos and regret
Jude the Obscure is a roller coaster of intensity but doesn’t flow as well as Hardy’s other novels, and there are moments when contrived events seem to propel the plot.
Hardy describes a conflicted society in a story of individual pathos and regret; challenging the church, moral issues of relationships, sex and academic opportunity of the time.
One has great sympathy for the lead protagonists, Jude and Sue; innocents battered, and victims of a repressive and perverse society. I unsuccessfully willed Jude on, frustrated by his naïveté; Sue is complex, presents unexpected revelations but is finally worn down.
There is a quaintness ... when Sue and Jude have their first discussion after many months of friendship...Sue says that “she has remained as she began”...(that she is still a virgin) ... how euphemistic is that ! ? ... and partly exemplifies the hypocrisy of the time ....attitudes toward sexuality, marriage and oppression of women.
I’m no longer surprised by anti-semitic references in Victorian novels... are these justified as accurate reflections of the day, or Hardy’s gratuitous and thoughtless inclusions .... !
There is high feeling and emotion; the novel builds and matures and the final chapters stupendous. Not the strongest of Hardy’s, but one needs to discover this and experience his work through; certainly the social comment is key.
4 persone l'hanno trovata utile
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Generale5 out of 5 stars
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Lettura5 out of 5 stars
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Storia5 out of 5 stars
- Barbara
- 26/04/2015
Hardy at his best and darkest
Thomas hardy reminds us how far he was ahead of his time with this stunning, sad, story on the perils of love and marriage.
3 persone l'hanno trovata utile
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Generale4 out of 5 stars
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Lettura2 out of 5 stars
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Storia5 out of 5 stars
- Kris T.
- 03/05/2018
Wonderful Novel / Mixed Performance
Performer's interpretation of the female voices is distracting and irritating, which is rather unfortunate as it detracts from the narrative.
2 persone l'hanno trovata utile
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Generale5 out of 5 stars
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Lettura5 out of 5 stars
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Storia5 out of 5 stars
- F. Wynn
- 27/07/2015
A Harrowing Tale
The novel was beautifully read . A multilayered tale of thwarted idealism and the tragic consequences thereof.
2 persone l'hanno trovata utile
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Generale3 out of 5 stars
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Lettura4 out of 5 stars
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Storia2 out of 5 stars
- David
- 15/02/2022
Difficult at best.
Well read but goodness me what a tragic story. Almost gave up on it. Try Mayor of Casterbridge or far from the Madding Crowd first.
1 persona l'ha trovata utile
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Generale5 out of 5 stars
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Lettura5 out of 5 stars
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Storia4 out of 5 stars
- hayley keating
- 30/10/2021
So frustrating!!
I love Thomas Hardy but had never read Jude The Obscure. Oh my!!
It’s typical Hardy. Delicious writing. But spoilt for me because I just couldn’t care for any of the characters. ( maybe that’s the point).
I knew from the outset that trouble was afoot and it just didn’t let up! Lost track of how many times I muttered “ oh for crying out loud, just marry him for Gods sake!”
Have to say that Sue is THE most frustrating woman ever. I often felt like throwing my phone out the window in despair!
I’m pretty sure I could not have finished it- the story really does drag on with little progress made - were it not for the EXCELLENT narration. It really added atmosphere and the necessary feeling of impending sadness and doom. His accents were brilliant and I was able to distinguish who was talking. A first class performance.
If you love Hardy give it a go- but not if you’re in need of cheering up. Oh and accompany each sitting with chocolate and a bottle of wine! Youill need it!!
1 persona l'ha trovata utile
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Generale5 out of 5 stars
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Lettura5 out of 5 stars
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Storia5 out of 5 stars
- Seayeaitch
- 14/11/2020
Superb, probably Hardys best.
This, I understand was the last novel from Thomas Hardy, the story cannot be faulted , Hardy was the master observer of human relationship with a wide understanding and tremendous skill in weaving the reasoning into his story: Stephen Thorne does an excellent job in his narration.
1 persona l'ha trovata utile
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Generale5 out of 5 stars
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Lettura5 out of 5 stars
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Storia5 out of 5 stars
- Esther Yeadon
- 10/10/2020
Worth the time
I love Thomas Hardy’s book, so relevant even now. So worth listening too, I listen on long car journeys !
1 persona l'ha trovata utile
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Generale5 out of 5 stars
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Lettura5 out of 5 stars
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Storia5 out of 5 stars
- Kindle Customer
- 11/04/2023
Excellent
Stephen Thorne's rendition is beautifully done and the characters of Jude and Sue are brought wonderfully to life. Bravo