Reviews

The Odd Women by George Gissing

stephxsu's review against another edition

2.0

The writing is not too bad, as it reads easily, but the story is pretty mundane and directionless, with women in various stages of late-nineteenth-century feminism circling in or around the institution of marriage, and then ending up exactly where they started. Some critics claim that THE ODD WOMEN is a naturalist novel, in which everything must and will revert back to its original state of entropy. But I never got emotionally invested even in the characters’ long circle back to their original states. Overall, a mindless, slightly pleasant but mostly forgettable read.

musingswithmiranda's review against another edition

3.0

George Gissing’s The Odd Women was written in 1893 and is set during the Victorian period in England. This was my first time reading any of Gissing’s work, but I was pleasantly surprised. I was not expecting a male writer during this time to exhibit feminist ideology. The author takes inspiration from “odd women,” or the women who were left over as other men and women married, especially considering that women greatly outnumbered men during this time. However, some of these women simply made this choice of not marrying for themselves.

The Odd Women follows a variety of women who must navigate the expectations society sets for them. Most notably, this includes Alice Madden, Virginia Madden, Monica Madden, Mary Barfoot, and Rhoda Nunn. Gissing uses these characters to explore ideas about marriage and morals while testing the traditional ideas about women’s roles in society. Many believed that women must marry and have nothing else going for them. However, some of these women are “odd women” and use this role to advocate for female emancipation through job training and education. It is interesting to see how Gissing contrasts these main female characters with their different opinions about life and marriage. Readers follow them through many trials and tribulations among themselves and with men, but I personally was rooting for them all in the end.

Gissing’s The Odd Women is not only enjoyable and entertaining but insightful as well. I learned a lot more about “odd women” and feminist views during this time. I appreciated how well-written the novel was as well. However, some parts seemed to drag on and some characters were definitely more likable than others. I was also expecting a bit more out of the ending. Regardless, The Odd Women was a fun and interesting read.

asiachudzik's review against another edition

emotional funny tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

a genuinely gripping novel that explores modern themes I wouldn’t have expected to be discussed in that era. somewhat heartbreaking ending too. 

tabitha997's review against another edition

challenging dark sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

420blazeit's review against another edition

1.0

the title of this book should've been "too bad, so sad", bc damn did everyone struggle in this book. had to read for my last history assignment and boy am i glad that is over. next time i wanna feel depressed about being a woman, i'll pick up this handy dandy novel. thanks george! #ripmonica

emilywoodruff's review against another edition

adventurous informative inspiring medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

erboe501's review against another edition

2.0

Although the ending wasn't satisfying on a romantic level, it did on an intellectual one. None of these characters could've ended up in a different position.
Brings up some interesting questions about the nature of marriage.

piedwarbler's review against another edition

4.0

I read this for Victober.

Is Gissing a feminist? I am still unsure. It seems most of the trouble with marriages in this book can be laid at the feet of the women characters.
I struggled with the middle section, which read more like a tract than a novel, but, towards the end, the narrative drive picked up, and I enjoyed the denouement, although it seemed convenient for plotting purposes.
Gissing definitely seems very taken with Ruskin and his writings, and the novel is also rich with allusions to Shakespeare and classical themes. I enjoyed spotting these. The footnotes weren’t specially helpful and often pointed out the obvious.
I know it’s often said that the women characters are very well drawn. I didn’t find them all that convincing. I think Gissing is grappling with modern ideas about marriage and relationships but can’t quite separate himself from blaming his wives for their weaknesses.

kismazsola's review against another edition

2.0

2,5 csillag

LibriVoxon keresgetve jött szembe, természetesen Elizabeth Klett felolvasása ez is. 19. század vége, úgyhogy az időszak is illeszkedett az érdeklődési körömhöz. Gissingről sosem hallottam még, és bár nem tudom, írt-e még, nem is szeretnék tőle mással megismerkedni. Mindent összevetve nem volt egy kellemes élmény, a második felétől különösen vártam, hogy legyen már vége.

Ami kezdettől fogva nagyon zavart (és talán ez kicsit a fülszöveg hibája is, ami szerint 3 nő sorsát követjük végig), hogy nincsen szinte semmilyen fókusz a karaktereinken. Nincsen főszereplő, összevissza ugrálunk emberek között, és néha nagyon nehezen áll össze a kép. Elindultunk egy családapa halálától, de a három lányból csak egyikük volt igazán lényeges végső soron, mégis a következő fejezet egy nem annyira lényeges nővérével foglalkozott. És végig azt éreztem, hogy nincsen megfelelő dinamika abban, hogy mikor kiről mennyi ideig és hogyan van szó.

A következő problémám az volt, hogy nem igazán álltak össze valós emberekké a karakterek, a tetteik és mondataik, főleg a többet szerepeltetett hölgyeknek és uraknak kevesebbszer tettek ki egy egészet, mint ahányszor nem. Valószínűleg azért, mert Gissing elsődleges célja (szerintem) nem egy jó regény megírása volt. (Minő szerencse, mert finoman szólva sem sikerült, bár goodreadsen sokan nem értenek egyet velem.) Hanem be akarta mutatni, hogy a nőknek milyen lehetőségeik voltak a 19. század végén, hogyan gondolkodtak, mi volt a közvélemény stb. És ezt végső soron meg is tette, bár azt nem mondanám, hogy mindenre kiterjedően. Ami különösen furcsa, hogy ebben a könyvben nincsen egy szál boldog nő se, sőt mindenki csak egyre boldogtalanabb lesz. Na jó, nem akarok kirekesztő lenni, a férfiak sem boldogok, már az a pár, aki véletlenül valahogy bekerült a regénybe.

Azt azért nem mondanám, hogy nem volt semmi jó a regényben, mert az erős túlzás lenne. Volt néhány jól felvezetett jelenet. Tulajdonképpen ha csak Monica és Mr Widowson kapcsolatáról szólt volna a kötet, jobb lett volna. Az sem volt tökéletes, és nekem messze túl drámai is volt, de abban valid problémák voltak, előre is lehetett jósolni a fő konfliktust. Csak a többi mellékszál nem kellett volna, de akkor meg nem lettek volna bemutatva a radikális feminista (abban az időben, nem mai terminológia szerint) nézetek.

Nem is tudom, miként összesíthetném. De szerintem az mindent elmond, hogy kizárólag arra koncentrálok most, hogy végre jöhet Elizabeth Gaskell Mary Bartonja.

spinstah's review against another edition

3.0

This book focuses on single women (the odd ones out of the marriage game) in 1890s England. At that time, there were far more women than men (this came up in "Governess," as well, and I am now curious as to how this imbalance came about). As a result, many women (especially those in the middle classes) had to go out and earn a living; many wound up as poorly paid governesses, others became overworked shop girls. Two of the main characters in this book have set up a school to educate women to become clerks and also take on the typing of manuscripts on a contract basis.

The story follows two main threads: one of the women who runs the school, Rhoda, falls in love with a man who is at first trying to win her love as a game (she has stated that she is anti-marriage, and he takes this as a kind of challenge). Rhoda and her lover have such a clash of wills that they destroy any possibility between the two of them. Another woman in the story (at first a pupil in the school), Monica, makes a very unsuitable match with a much older man, and lives to regret it as his horrible jealousy causes him to want to exert control over every aspect of her life. Monica makes an aborted attempt at an affair, then leaves her husband; she is of course punished in the end by dying in childbirth (an ending which really annoyed me). Another female character deals with the disappointments and hardships of the single life by turning to alcohol.

Overall this was an interesting story, despite the very annoying ending; I highly recommend it if you read a lot of books that take place in this period anyway, as it brings a new perspective to that literature. In "Book Lust," Nancy Pearl recommends following this with "The Odd Woman," by Gail Goodwin, which I intend to do.