Social Darwinism in Thomas Hardy’s Jude the Obscure

Abstract

This dissertation basically makes a study of Thomas Hardy’s Jude the Obscure with the concept of Social Darwinism. All beings in this world have to face the challenge of Nature at every step. The one who succeeds can survive and others must extinct. Apart from Nature, human beings are chained with the rules and regulations of society which never allow one to step forward. The forces like fate, destiny, chance and coincidence always pull them down. Tragic consequences that the protagonist of this novel confronts, is the result of Nature and other social forces. The protagonist of Jude the Obscure is victimized by his fate. He is destined to be doomed. The main character of this novel, Jude dies at last as he could not fight against these forces. Whereas, the other characters survive as they are able to change themselves according to the Nature. So, here the researcher has explored the truth of life with the help of Social Darwinism. It is an attempt to show the other side of Nature, which is cruel.At the same time it is an effort to throw light upon the relation between the tiny human being and vast Nature.