مميزات وعيوب North and South (Wordsworth Classics)

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  Mariam Badawi

  (8 سنة, 10 أشهر ago)

  North and South is a romantic social classic written by Elizabeth Gaskell. What makes it different than other romance novels is the social aspect that is taking over the novel. The love story is between Margaret Hale, who is from the South, and John Thornton, who is from the North. Just like in any given country, the two different parts have different ways. In the South, it is better if you are a gentleman and an heir to someone wealthy. In the North, people would think more highly of you if you actually work and earn your own money. You can be a wealthy respected man of business in the North, but they would look down upon you as a “trader” in the South. The Hales had to leave their quiet life in a rural town, Helstone, in the South, due to problems that Mr. Hale experienced at his work as a clergyman, and move to an industrial town in the North called Milton. The Hales were at first extremely taken back by the way things run in Milton, but then they start to get used to it bit by bit. Margaret and Thornton are not merely fictional characters, rather they represent the different social classes in England, and their relationship illustrates those differences they have. They fall in love, but it is not easy: pride, death, poverty, and suspicion get in their way. The ending is wonderful; it shows how anyone could get what they want if they just want it enough and strive for it. The novel also tackles social problems that do not just concern the people who lived during the time of the publication; these problems could be read in a modern light. Gaskell sheds the light on the poor working class in England and their problems. To represent that class we are presented with the Higgins whom Margaret befriends once she lands in Milton. The Higgins along with all the other workers in Thornton’s mill and other neighboring mills start a strike that would tell us a lot about the communication – or rather lack or it - between the workers and the owners, which in turn shows us how the different classes perceive themselves and each other. The novel is well-written, and very interesting. However, I prefer the ending of the 2004 mini-series; I find it more representative of the message of the novel than the one in the novel.