Jude the Obscure

The last of Hardy s novels, Jude the Obscure offers some of the author s most valuable insights into the issues of class, religion, and marriage. It tells the story of Jude Fawley, an aspiring academic from the working-class who falls in love with Sue, his cousin. Finding that their relationship only incurs the wrath and judgment of their community, Jude and Sue experience ostracism and tragedy in this highly controversial Victorian novel.