Post by Taika of Narfell on Jan 6, 2007 5:20:12 GMT 1
My reading of this book last autumn became eerily relevant when John Fowles passed away on the 5th of November 2005. A great author has left this world, thankfully he left the proof of his skills behind for the rest of us to continue to enjoy. And enjoyment is most definitely something I have come to associate with reading The French Lieutenant's Woman.
'Woman' is a humourous book, not in the sense that you would call it a comedy, but in a subtle way that more often got me chuckling rather than laughing outright. Written in the 1960s (published 1969) it is no longer quite uptodate with the latest scientific achievements of our time, this makes for an interesting read since the book is already a commentary upon days of yore; more specifically: 1867 - during the Victorian Age.
The book follows Charles Smithson in his struggles to maintain his rank and position and marry Ernestina Freeman as is fitting and proper rather than following his intuition and urges and let himself be drawn to the mysterious French Lieutenant's Woman, Sarah Woodruff. The novel takes up the tone that novels from the Victorian Age often used, that factual and dry approach to things, simply as if it is a biography that is being laid out. However, once in a while the author shines through and makes a comment about how things were then as opposed to how they were at the time of the writing. A fine example would be people's reaction to two girls sharing a bed. In the Victorian setting of the book no one would even wonder since it was quite normal for servant girls to share one bed, whereas it would be looked upon with far more sexual connotation in the 60s.
Already in the second chapter is Charles' infatuation with Sarah Woodruff introduced, and it follows him throughout the book, in fact that very fascination is the book. As he is all set to marry Ernestina this is clearly not a very good thing, but what actually happens is up to the reader; Fowles wrote three endings for the book, one in which Charles does the right thing according to Victorian morality and marries Ernestina, and two that are alternate versions of quite a different story, they are no further apart than a page or three, though, so that chapter may simply seem odd to the unwatchful eye.
A fantastic thing throughout this book is the subtle commentary on whether certain people are the 'fittest' or not. Charles touches upon the subject of Darwin in a conversation with another character, hence the book may also be read as a discussion of which group of people are the fittest, the aristocracy, the middle-class, the workers, the liberated women... I shall not divulge what conclusion the book apparently draws, mainly because another reader may see something entirely different than I.
What I am certain of is that this book is well worth reading for those who like a good story as well as those who appreciate something to analyse and think about.
Highly Recommended.
'Woman' is a humourous book, not in the sense that you would call it a comedy, but in a subtle way that more often got me chuckling rather than laughing outright. Written in the 1960s (published 1969) it is no longer quite uptodate with the latest scientific achievements of our time, this makes for an interesting read since the book is already a commentary upon days of yore; more specifically: 1867 - during the Victorian Age.
The book follows Charles Smithson in his struggles to maintain his rank and position and marry Ernestina Freeman as is fitting and proper rather than following his intuition and urges and let himself be drawn to the mysterious French Lieutenant's Woman, Sarah Woodruff. The novel takes up the tone that novels from the Victorian Age often used, that factual and dry approach to things, simply as if it is a biography that is being laid out. However, once in a while the author shines through and makes a comment about how things were then as opposed to how they were at the time of the writing. A fine example would be people's reaction to two girls sharing a bed. In the Victorian setting of the book no one would even wonder since it was quite normal for servant girls to share one bed, whereas it would be looked upon with far more sexual connotation in the 60s.
Already in the second chapter is Charles' infatuation with Sarah Woodruff introduced, and it follows him throughout the book, in fact that very fascination is the book. As he is all set to marry Ernestina this is clearly not a very good thing, but what actually happens is up to the reader; Fowles wrote three endings for the book, one in which Charles does the right thing according to Victorian morality and marries Ernestina, and two that are alternate versions of quite a different story, they are no further apart than a page or three, though, so that chapter may simply seem odd to the unwatchful eye.
A fantastic thing throughout this book is the subtle commentary on whether certain people are the 'fittest' or not. Charles touches upon the subject of Darwin in a conversation with another character, hence the book may also be read as a discussion of which group of people are the fittest, the aristocracy, the middle-class, the workers, the liberated women... I shall not divulge what conclusion the book apparently draws, mainly because another reader may see something entirely different than I.
What I am certain of is that this book is well worth reading for those who like a good story as well as those who appreciate something to analyse and think about.
Highly Recommended.