Thyrza

[KEV67]

I bought this book online, but I cannot remember the website. I was surprised when it arrived, because it was A4 sized. In a conventional format it would be quite a thick book. I did not post this under classics, because although it was written in the late 19th Century, it is not widely read. George Gissing's most famous books are The Odd Women and New Grub Street. I often find Gissing's books a bit clunky. I think he had to get his novels out so quickly he did not have sufficient time to smooth them out. They are usually socially interesting books. I have only got to chapter 8 in this book. It's partly about a socially engaged, young gentleman. He sets about delivering a course of lectures in a working class area of London, but his real aim is to create a working class movement. Thyrza is a young, working class woman. She is pretty and has a good singing voice. Otherwise, she has not figured much in the book yet.

[lunababymoonchild]

Never heard of this but I’ll investigate. Thanks for posting

[KEV67]

Gissing is such a gloomster. He's invented some sympathetic characters who have a chance of being happy. I know he is going to pull the rug from under them. I often don't feel like reading my daily chapter.

[KEV67]

Struggling with this. I am over half way. As predicted, a happy circumstance is turning to brown stuff. Things could easily get worse.

This is my sixth Gissing. He wrote about the London poor predominantly. However of the six I have read, The Whirlpool was about the upper middle class, The Odd Women and New Grub Street about the middle class. The Netherworld was mostly about the undeserving poor/working class/underclass. Demos was mostly about the working class. Demos was an exploration of all the different strands of Socialism that were developing in late 19th Century Britain. There was a bit of conflict, because a working class political activist inherits a lot of money and starts becoming an industrialist. His interests conflict with the rural Tory interests, as well as the local labour. Thyrza seems mostly about the respectable working class.

Edited March 16 by KEV67