Jude the Obscure character analysis
... the suicide of Little Father Time and the death of the two children in Christminster is a turning point in the novel. Sue is overcome with grief and shock, and her child is stillborn. Outcome: Events now move rapidly to an unhappy ending. The tragedy leaves Sue scarred and broken. Tormented by guilt, she now turns to religion, becoming fanatical and obsessed. She returns to Phillotson and remarries him. Jude, who is now past caring, allows himself to be cornered into a second marriage with Arabella. Both marriages result in greater misery and suffering, and Jude, broken physically and emotionally, finally dies. The novel ends in tragedy, with the death of Jude. Themes Hardy presents the classic problem of the modern literary hero; that of the individual engaged in a conflict with society. Both Jude and Sue, because of their freedom of thought and defiance of social conventions, are alienated from society. This modern spirit leads them to question and reject old institutions and values and to seek new ones. Jude and Sue attempt to create a code of ethics, or an interpretation of reality, to suit themselves, having abandoned the old conventions presented by religion and the state. Throughout the novel there is much discussion of marriage, soc...