『무명의 쥬드』의 현대성: 성애의 탐구와 서술전략

What is Distinctly ‘Modern’ about Jude the Obscure?

The reader may find Hardy's Jude the Obscure full of contradictions, especially because Hardy applies two different narrative methods to Jude and Sue respectively: the third-person omniscient viewpoint for the male protagonist, and the third-person limited viewpoint for the female. In addition, Sue is usually portrayed through the eyes and consciousness of Jude. This apparently disproportionate narrative form is in fact a result of a carefully designed narrative strategy, in which Hardy secures a high level of artistic unity. In terms of reaching a fuller depiction of Sue's sexuality, the third-person limited viewpoint enables Hardy to prevent a head-on collision with the prevailing ethical norms of the day, and, more importantly, to overcome the difficulties of describing different aspects of reality ensuing from very unstable and rapidly changing sexual relationships. In terms of dramatizing Jude's idealism, the omniscient narrator vividly shows how Jude's attitudes towards reality keep him from achieving happiness with Sue. His ingrained habit of simply beautifying Sue cannot but aggravate her deep troubles with her own sexuality which is conditioned by the harsh realities of late Victorian England. Hardy tries to come to terms with the anxiety of sexuality that is distinctly ‘modern’. Within this context, Hardy's efforts lead to the apparently disproportionate narrative form, which is also ‘modern’ and very efficient for dramatizing the protagonists' tragedy.