Hard Times (Annotated & Quotes About Hard Times)

The 'error' was contemporary utilitarian philosophy, exposed as philosophy by the hard head discipline Thomas Gradgrind in hard times (1854). But Dickens shortest novel, is more than a polemical tract for the times; the tragic story of Louisa Gradgrind and his father is one of the triumphs of Dickens. When Louisa, trapped in a Loveless marriage, falls prey to a lounger seducer, the crisis obliges his father to reconsider their precious system. However, as well as the development of the story reflects Dickens growing pessimism about human nature and society, hard times mark his return to the subject that had become so popular his first works: the fun of people. Sleary's circus represents the most considered defense of Dickens of the need for entertainment and infuses the novel with good humor that has ensured its appeal to generations of readers.