"Hard Times"

Comparison Essay # 116099

Literature > English

"Hard Times"

A comparison of the two main characters in "Hard Times" by Charles Dickens.

888 words () | 0 sources | 2009 United States

Paper Summary:

The paper identifies both the similarities and the differences between the characters of Josiah Bounderby and Thomas Gradgrind in Charles Dickens' novel "Hard Times". The paper analyzes these characters in terms of their morality, inter-personal interaction, and hubris. The paper shows how with Bounderby and Gradgrind, one can look through the lens of Dickens and see how he in fact viewed the onset of industrialization, and what it might mean for both the bourgeois and the common man.

From the Paper:

"Primarily, in terms of morality, Thomas Gradgrind can be seen as a character of upright moral values and rigid beliefs. He rears his children with a sense of strict and uncompromising obedience, and instills in them a passion for truth, and rational thought and behavior. While compassion is not part of the rearing process, Gradgrind certainly means well for his children, and only hopes that they continue in the path he has created by adhering strictly to the lessons of self-interest and rationality. However, it can be said that at the same time, by laying out this path for his children, he has, in fact done a moral disservice to these characters. By simply relying on these simple truths, his children have actually confused their morals evidenced by his son robbing the bank."