Jude the Obscure

Thomas Hardys final novel Jude the Obscure began as a serial publication on December 1894 before being published in book form the following year. It is the story of its titular character Jude Fawley a young lower-class man with dreams of being a scholar and his relationships with his wife Arabella and his free-spirited cousin Sue Bridehead. The novel follows the life of Jude from his youth living in a village in southern England where he works in a bakery and studies Classical Greek and Latin in his spare time with hopes of one day becoming a scholar at Christminster a fictional city modeled after Oxford. His dreams are dashed however when he becomes ensnared by deceit into marriage with Arabella Donn a coarse and superficial girl. What follows is a classic and tragic tale that plays upon many themes principally of which is the idea that ones ruinous downfall is the product of having lived a sinful life. Having been harshly criticized in its day for its scandalous portrayals Jude the Obscure has since been recognized as one of Hardys finest and most intricate works. This edition is printed on premium acid-free paper.