Mary Barton is a novel with an author, genre, plot and conclusion marked by tension, opposition and conflict. It exists on the event horizon between the British industrial and agricultural economies, between Tory Anglicanism and the non-conformist Whigs, between employers and works and, finally, between women and men. The original title was to have been John Barton, but was changed later to its present form. Yet, critics reading it today find its narrative to fall, as did the original publication, into two books,with the first following the descent of John Barton and the other the ascendancy of his daughter, Mary.
The first half follows John's union activities and the industrial upheavals of 1840s Manchester. Its strong sympathies for the labor class, use of their crude language and description of their nauseating living conditions caused many to criticize the novel, despite Charles Dickens' praise.
The second half of the novel exposes the conflicting Victorian ideals of womanhood. Through the characters of Esther Barton, a prostitute, and Mary Barton, a vain and naive girl who transforms into a capable woman, Gaskell sets up a framework for feminism. Though on the surface an English Provincial novel in the fashion of Jane Austen, Charlotte Bronte and George Eliot, Mary Barton rewards multiple readings by revealing webs of inner conflict that both affirm convention and whisper rebellion.
0 有用 金凯瑞 2020-04-01 22:31:28
两门课都要读的书,以为会是旷世之作,但其实跟平时看的小言没啥区别。拜金最后洗白的女主,渣男男二,舔狗男主,配上维多利亚时期工厂背景,乡村爱情既视感。
0 有用 桃 2014-01-15 15:59:06
2/5
0 有用 R. 2016-05-31 17:13:05
挺小众的,但还是看完了! masrers vs. laborers 比较现实地再现了工业化进程中的劳工冲突,但情节有些戏剧化。 文中的宗教色彩挺浓厚,可见当时人们还是挺虔诚的。
0 有用 lightwins 2021-10-01 15:15:57
本学期读完的第二本书,好的开始。
0 有用 Pangur Bán 2023-03-28 15:44:10 上海
结局虽然过于理想,但是也算是美好的(尽管遥不可及的)希冀吧!
0 有用 而桦 2023-12-08 21:08:45 北京
没有north and south好看
0 有用 SSPACE 2023-09-28 07:20:20 中国澳门
p.61 flaneur
0 有用 雾隐泉 2023-09-22 23:19:10 北京
Full of contrasts: Dives and Lazarus, nostalgia and progress, elasticity and hardness, downwards and upwards, dimness and vibrancy…但是Gaskell的立场不彻底,导致核心矛盾并没有得到解决
0 有用 Cannelé 2023-09-19 17:39:29 北京
好看!比南方和北方好看
0 有用 Pangur Bán 2023-03-28 15:44:10 上海
结局虽然过于理想,但是也算是美好的(尽管遥不可及的)希冀吧!