Classics TBR: Thomas Hardy & others

Classical literature... one of my goals for 2021, is to indulge more intensely with classic literature and writings, be it novels, poems, or otherwise. I'm sure I have only a vague idea about the world of classical literature, but I am trying my best to catch up... with at least the ones I can resonate with the most.

Undoubtedly, I had the of early exposure during my childhood to Shakespear's works, Charles Dickens, Jane Austen, Elizabeth Gaskell and many more. I never thought to venture in earlier works, as the contemporary writings and language were most appealing to my taste. It wasn't until some years back, that I started to dig deeper in the stacks of older literature... perhaps because it was a lot more widely available than before (?). That's when I developed an interest in Khalil Gibran, Dostoyevsky and Rumi (mainly)... But like they say, it's a bag of worms! The more I'm searching, the further I fall down the rabbit hole ^^"

Some might add to this argument, "but what Is considered "classical" these days!? Is it just a group if books written by white men a couple of 100 years back??", and I agree with them, as Murakami's books are considered as "modern classics", Donna Tartt's A Secret History and (possibly) if we were villains by L.M. Rio are also grouped as classics.... something worth pondering over...

Back to the topic at hand now

One of the more interesting authors from the 19th century I have stumbled upon was: Thomas Hardy (1840 - 1928).

Thomas Hardy was a Victorian realist, novelist and poet. His most notable literary work: Far from the Madding Crowd (1874), The Mayor of Casterbridge (1886), Tess of the d'Urbervilles (1891), and Jude the Obscure (1895). Hardy's characters are rather tragic... almost always struggling with their passion and their social circumstances. Him being a realist, he's always scrutinised the Victorian society's constraints and beliefs, particularly those which are relating to marriage, education and religion, as they enforce unhappiness and the baggage of suffering it brings along with it.

From Tom Hardy's long list of novels, I found these to be a good start with his work:

A Pair of Blue Eyes (1873)
Mayor of Casterbridge (1886)
Life's Little Ironies (1894)
Jude the Obscure (1895)

I cannot wait to start reading them! They're there on my TBR shelf... waiting... Whenever it is that I will start with these books, I know for sure that I would want to review them.

Thank you for reading! Stay tuned for more!