Hard Times
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Hard Times
Essay #6 - Character Analysis: Louisa
In the novel Hard Times, Dickens presents a character by the name of Louisa
Gradgrind Bounderby who had suffered from her father’s education system.
Mr.Gradgrind’s philosophy forced Louisa to “discard the word fancy altogether”
(11) causing her to base experiences on facts and not from emotions. Throughout
the novel, Louisa realizes that she does not have any emotional experiences to guide
her. This is apparent when she had been presented with a proposal for marriage, and
on her journey to visit her ill mother.
By Louisa being able to recognize the need for emotional experiences, Louisa is
able to help her father see the wrong doing of his philosophy of facts.
It becomes evident that Louisa had suffered from her fathers education
system when Mr.Gradgrind had presented Louisa with Mr.Bounderby’s proposal of
marriage. Upon Louisa’s response, Mr.Gradgrind had inquired whether or not she
might have had another proposal which he was unaware of: “You have never
entertained in secret any other proposal”(79). This led to Louisa revealing how her
fathers school of facts had not permitted her to explore with her own emotions :
“Father...what other proposal can have been made to me? Whom have I seen?
Where have I been? What are my hearts experiences” (79). Louisa continues on
explaining that he should have known better than to ask such a question, considering
she has never been able to question or wonder past his school of facts : “Why
father...what a strange question to ask me....You have been so careful of me, that I
never had a child’s heart. You have trained me so well, that I never dreamed a
child’s dream. You have dealt so wisely with me, father, from my cradle to this
hour, that I never had a child’s belief or a child’s fear.”(79). This is significant
because this is the first time which Louisa attempts to tell her father that she has no
emotional experiences because her life has been based on his philosophy of facts.
Unfortunately, her father misinterprets her message, and feels that her response is
merle one of gratitude.
Louisa left for home after she had heard her mother was ill. Along her journey
home, Louisa realized that she had no childhood memories to make her homecoming
a pleasant experience: “As s...
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