On The Family Ethics In Jude The Obscure

Jude the Obscure, Hardy's richest and most committed creation, has sustained uproar of debate and reinterpretation for a century. Literary critics inclined to discuss this novel from the angle of class,gender and psychology rather than ethics. However, since the novel set against the late Victorian age when ethical conditions were facing corruption and crisis, it is its ambiguity in ethically interpretation that brings it the greatest disputes and fame. This thesis intends to reveal the most important ethical theme in the novel—morality of marriage and duties between parents and their children through a detailed analysis of family ethics reflected in this novel, and explore some of Hardy's narrative techniques that promote to embody his ethical ideas.The thesis totally includes six parts, the introduction and conclusion embodied. Chapter one consists of two sections, mainly introducing the literary ethical criticism and the historical background of the novel—the ethical crisis in late Victorian Age. Since the novel aims at criticizing the moral corruption in late Victorian Age, literary ethical criticism is the great representative manifestation to discuss ethical contradictions and conflicts in art world. Chapter Two has a detailed discussion on marital ethics in Jude the Obscure. Three kinds of marriage are shown in this chapter, such as materialism marriage between Jude and Arabella, moral marriage without love between Phillotson and Sue, and immoral spiritual marriage between Jude and Sue. All end up with a tragedy for ethical problems. Chapter Three concentrates on the ethics between generations, especially the duties that Father Time's two mothers should bear to him. The ethics between generations basically cover the responsibilities and duties by the parents, and psychological education for their children. Next, the perfect union between the theme of family ethics and some narrative features which Hardy has used in this fiction, is about to be discussed in this chapter. The conclusion is the last part of this thesis, mainly summarizing the main point of the thesis in brief. Moral regulations outline the moral relationships of reality. Only when a family abides by the majority of family ethics can they get a harmonious life.This thesis aims at gaining a comprehensive reading of family ethics in Jude the Obscure to find the real reason for the characters'tragedies. Meanwhile, it gives a vivid depiction of the Victorian moral crisis through analyzing the novel's family ethics, which can help modern readers reconsider the problems of family, marriage and duties in their own modern lives.