He shrank from hearing Margaret's very name mentioned; he, while he blamed her – while he was jealous of her – while he renounced her – he loved her sorely, in spite of himself.
North and South
by Elizabeth Gaskell
Genre: Classic Romance
About: Margaret Hale is forced to leave her beloved, quiet home in the south to settle up north, in nothing less horrifying than a manufacturing town. The uncouth manners, the smoky air, and her family's reduced means are bad enough, but Margaret's life takes many more drastic turns and soon even her unconquerable pride is called into question as she begins to know something of the iron will of Milton men.
Thoughts
The setting is brilliant, I love how distinct Gaskell makes each place, from the landscape to the people, to how Margaret must learn to navigate its terrain. The plot also has a lot of complexities that make for an interesting read with Gaskell diving deep into tyranny, strikes and martyrdom. She never brushes aside a topic but truly explores it and the consequences it has for all the characters. The characters are also very memorable and well drawn out.
That said, an issue I have with this book is the character of Margaret Hale. She has some flaws that I thought worked well - her pride and snobbery I think highlighted the stereotypical divide of north and south, and of course gives us that juicy conflict between her and Mr Thornton. But overall her character is portrayed in the classic Special Girl trope. Guys fall in love with her despite themselves because she's just so not like other girls. Halfway through the book she has two marriage proposals and the way she acts in both is as though she has no understanding of the time that she's living in. She's a woman who has been introduced to Society. She goes to balls. She attends dinner parties. She is Out. So how she can feel insulted or shocked by a marriage proposal, acting as though it's a dirty word and taints her purity, is a bit bizarre to read. Or even when she can't understand how people would perceive her walking out alone with a strange man in the dark as maybe a tad bit improper... Sure, as readers, we know she isn't stepping out with a lover, but she has to understand how that act could be misconstrued.
Mr Thornton, on the other hand, is the star of the book for me. His character arc and everything about him on the page is so engaging to read with some absolutely killer lines and heartache.
Overall, I liked the in depth exploration of truly complex issues and Mr Thornton has such great character development. But the story is Margaret Hale's and she set a slower pace with a less enjoyable payoff as I don't feel she really grew as a character, at least not when I compare her to the growth of others in the text.
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