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Title: North and South (Penguin Classics) by Patricia Ingham, Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell ISBN: 0-14-043424-0 Publisher: Penguin USA (Paper) Pub. Date: June, 1996 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $10.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.92 (13 reviews)
Rating: 3
Summary: Just an Average Read
Comment: After reading this book and another by the same writer ("Mary Barton"), it becomes clear to me why the works of Elizabeth Gaskell are not as highly acclaimed as those by other writers of her time e.g. Charlotte Bronte, Charles Dickens or even Jane Austen. Mrs Gaskell wrote eloquently, her storylines are interesting and her heroines/heroes are likeable and believable BUT despite all these, you end up concluding that her writings are only averagely good.
"North and South" the novel started out nicely and interestingly enough. Halfway into the novel, I did fell in love with the story as I look forward to a romantic reconciliation between the penniless heroine, Margaret Hale and the rich mill owner, John Thornton. However, Mrs Gaskell made quite a mess of the ending. The last few chapters were boring and hurriedly written. Some of the most tedious chapters cover the character of a factory worker and Union member, Nicholas Higgins, and his ill, bed-ridden but truly-irritating daughter, Bessy who both keep droning on and on about their poverty, struggles and ailments.
In short, the ending is unsatisfactory and truly an anti-climax for the reader, after so much anticipation, as the beginning and earlier chapters of the novel are actually quite good.
Lastly, I will comment that comparatively, I find "North and South" more enjoyable than "Mary Barton" although the latter book has a better-written (i.e. "neater") ending.
Rating: 5
Summary: North and South (by Elizabeth Gaskell)
Comment: This is one of the best books I've ever read. It should be known that Elizabeth Gaskell was a protege of Charles Dickens. This book is a book written by a woman who was ahead of her times. The heroine is such a heroic and exciting character, while at the same time kind and benevolent. The plot is fast moving and exhilarating. I find this a treasure in English Literature...a must for the serious reader ...and especially women. Unfortunately Miss Gaskell died before she reached the level of fame she so deserved. This book was recommended to me by a professor of English Literary Philosophy at Univ. of So. Cal. What a find!
Rating: 4
Summary: Gaskell's Victorian novel with modern ideas
Comment: I agree with a lot that is written in the previous reviews here. Yes, there is a very slow start to this novel. I wonder whether that's because it was first serialized by Dickens, and Mrs. Gaskell was paid by the word. And, yes, the ending is rather abrupt, especially preceded by the last few slow chapters. Maybe Dickens lost his patience.
In so many ways, though, this novel is a treasure. It's not easy to write a political novel with a strong love story and good characterizations. Gaskell takes on quite a bit and mostly succeeds in her task of describing the changes industrialization brought to England. She balances her sympathy for the workers in the factories with the dilemmas posed to the mill owners by new machinery, competition from abroad, and the threats of potential workers' strikes. She contrasts very effectively the excitement of this new way of life against the nostalgia for the agrarian past. These were new concepts in Victorian England, but they are not so foreign today that we cannot readily understand their significance.
She gives us a sympathetic and spirited heroine in Margaret Hale, who is wise beyond her years. Another colorful character is Nicholas Higgins. I found myself looking forward to his scenes because he provides the humor in an almost-humorless book. (It is funny at the end, though, and I would have liked to have seen more of this tone.)
Mr. Thornton is a character we can readily identify with--someone who triumphs over adversity and seeks to constantly better himself. Someone with high standards, yet none higher than he holds himself to. Margaret is his match in every way.
I did see many plot similarities with "Pride and Prejudice" in the love story. We have characters of different class backgrounds who are initially repelled but who come to appreciate each other and are kept apart by misunderstandings and circumstances. The proposal scenes are strikingly familiar, and the first proposal includes almost the same language (re gentlemanlike behavior) that Elizabeth speaks to Darcy. And we have a Lady Catherine DeBourgh character in Mrs. Thornton, who does her best to drive the lovers apart. But I can't fault Mrs. Gaskell for borrowing plotlines from the master. Although Gaskell is a strong writer, she does not quite have Jane Austen's gift for revealing the humanity in her characters with humor and affection. There is not much "fun" and no banter (until the very last lines of the book) in the North and South love story.
There are many plot contrivances and conveniences, too, which compel us to suspend disbelief. A few too many rapid deaths, a character's coincidental presence at a key scene, another character showing up in an unexpected place, and more. But these limitations serve to drive the story and allow us to focus on the strong moral characters of our central characters and our strong wish for their eventual reconciliation.
In the Penguin edition, it is also rather disturbing to find the plot given away in the footnotes. I read the footnotes religiously to orient myself, but I don't understand why they have to mention so many plot occurrences (especially big things like deaths and proposals) ahead of time. So, if you don't want to know how things go, read the footnotes (and preface) judiciously.
OK, I've written a lot of negatives and yet I give the book 4 stars. Despite its flaws, North and South takes on a lot and mainly succeeds. I love its ambition and its great heart. I love that I learned a lot about English history at that particular time. I love that it rewarded me for getting through those first 150 pages with a rich, compelling story. I love that Mrs. Gaskell held my interest to the end. As Victorian novels go, this is surprisingly modern and a worthwhile read.
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Title: Mary Barton: A Tale of Manchester Life (Penguin Classics) by Macdonald Daly, Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell ISBN: 014043464X Publisher: Penguin USA (Paper) Pub. Date: April, 1997 List Price(USD): $9.00 |
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Title: Wives and Daughters (Penguin Classics) by Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell ISBN: 014243700X Publisher: Penguin USA (Paper) Pub. Date: April, 2001 List Price(USD): $13.95 |
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Title: Ruth (Penguin Classics) by Angus Easson, Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell ISBN: 0140434305 Publisher: Penguin USA (Paper) Pub. Date: March, 1998 List Price(USD): $10.00 |
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Title: Cranford (Oxford World's Classics) by Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell, Elizabeth Porges Watson, Porges Watson ISBN: 0192832093 Publisher: Oxford University Press Pub. Date: June, 1998 List Price(USD): $9.95 |
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Title: Sylvia's Lovers (Everyman Paperback Classics) by Elizabeth Gaskell ISBN: 0460877836 Publisher: Everymans Library List Price(USD): $8.95 |
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