Two on a Tower (Works of Thomas Hardy in Prose and Verse, Vol 12) [Hardcover]

Thomas Hardy (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1984 | Series: Works of Thomas Hardy in Prose and Verse, Vol 12

All night the astronomer's mind was on the stretch with curiosity as to what the Bishop could wish to say to him. A dozen conjectures entered his brain, to be abandoned in turn as unlikely. That which finally seemed the most plausible was that the Bishop, having become interested in his pursuits, and entertaining friendly recollections of his father, was going to ask if he could do anything to help him on in the profession he had chosen.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Ams Pr (June 1984)
• ISBN-10: 040460742X
• ISBN-13: 978-0404607425
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #10,693,359 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Two on a Tower, August 16, 2002

By 

Carol (Portland, Oregon) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Two on a Tower (Oxford World's Classics) (Paperback)

Two on a Tower was the 11th Thomas Hardy's 14 novels that I have read. Hardy can be depended upon to paint a vivid picture of the characters' environment, and their relationships to it, but this time with a twist: One of the two characters being an astronomer, most of the environmental descriptions are of the heavens, and are wonderfully appropriate for the characters' actions and 'aspects'.
Hardy had a gift of creating characters who are fascinating in their personalities and actions, and together with the environmental descriptions, reading his novels is just one step away from watching a really good movie of the story.
Of all Hardy's varied characters, I felt the most sympathy for the two on the tower. Viviette has a great need for love and is selfless in giving it. Swithin, a somewhat naive and literate scientist, is at the same time a tender and faithful lover. Of all Hardy's stories, I hoped that this one would somehow have that "happy ending", and I suffered uncounted times for both characters.
I highly recommend this book for emotional involvement, though it may tear you apart to read it!
I would also recommend another of Hardy's lesser known novels The Woodlanders, which I understand was his own favorite story, and remains mine also.

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Just another reason why Thomas Hardy is such a perfectionist, October 31, 2001

By 

"ringmaster_2k" (Toronto, CANADA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Two on a Tower (Everyman's Library) (Paperback)

Beautifully written, Thomas Hardy goes all out to make the reader see, hear, and smell every scene in this book. From begining to end, you never know what's going to happen next, and just when you think the story is calming down, Hardy throws a swerve your way. Great surprises, not predictable at all.

Hardy perhaps one of the better describers of setting of his time, shows once again, why books were so highly read back in his age.

Thomas once again delivered another great book of sadness, happiness, pregnancy and marriage. Although the story is mostly sad, it is still a great book, especially for those who have read previous Hardy books. A great read.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Sadly Overlooked, July 5, 2010

By 

Bill R. Moore (New York, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Two on a Tower (Hardcover)

Two on a Tower is among Thomas Hardy's least known novels, and though not in his top tier, is excellent and would be nearly anyone else's best. It certainly deserves a far wider readership, as it has both many usual strengths and is in several ways unique, making it worthwhile for both fans and others.

The main unique factor is the astronomy focus. Hardy had significant interest in and knowledge of astronomy, which pops up in his work here and there, but only Two deals with it extensively. The main male character is an astronomer, and the field gets considerable attention; readers can learn a fair amount about it from Two, as there are many technical terms, historical references, and other descriptions. The focus is indeed so strong that Two might almost be called proto-science fiction; astronomy is not integral to the plot, but its background importance is very high. Hardy was no scientist but researched extensively, taking great pains to be accurate, and it shows. The science has of course changed much in the century plus since, but the basics here focused on are essentially unaltered, and we also get an interesting historical perspective. Hardy in any case adapts astronomy to his purposes, not least by using terminology metaphorically - a risky move that could have been disastrously corny but is very well-done. More importantly, he shows it through the lens of his infamously pessimistic, naturalist philosophy. Many astronomers think of their field as one of wonder and beauty, but Hardy sees it very differently. Two is well worth reading for these factors alone, especially for anyone interested in astronomy.

The astronomy angle also has other important effects, not least in portraying the scientific mindset and culture of science just as it was beginning to arise. Much later novels like Sinclair Lewis' Arrowsmith (1925) are almost universally credited with first showing this, but Hardy was far ahead of his time here as in so many ways, essentially displaying it all in 1882. Two even anticipates stereotypes - such as scientists taking things too literally and being socially inept - not common until after World War II. It dramatizes many important related issues: scientists' single-minded devotion to study, the pure vs. practical research problem, the annoying but impossible to ignore finance issue, etc. It also incorporates related themes closer to Hardy's heart-centered, empathy-driven worldview: the problem of study vs. society, love vs. work, etc. Such dynamics are very complex, and he handles them deftly, making them not only interesting and thought-provoking but affecting.

All this may sound as if Two is inaccessible, but it is thankfully very far from so. Early chapters seem to move the book toward true early science fiction, well away from previous Hardy territory, but this soon proves untrue. It changes to his central concern: a story of - in this case quite literally - star-crossed lovers with consequent issues of class, law, morality, and religion. Fans will probably be glad, while some others may be disappointed, but the drama is so well-done that is surely impossible not to be at least moved. This plot aspect is very similar to several other Hardy works, and some elements are virtually verbatim, but many usual strengths are at near full force. Chief among them is Hardy's near-unparalleled portrayal of emotion; whatever else we think of the characters, it would take a hard heart indeed not to feel for them. Hardy always deals in universal human emotions, making his highly dramatic works accessible to all. The characters themselves are also very engaging; Hardy is famous for heroines, and Viviette is another in his long list of great ones and deserves to be much better known. Swithin is in many ways engrossing, if less sympathetic, while Louis and the bishop are two of his more memorable villains. The latter two may be somewhat one-dimensional, but the main characters are richly complex and full of verisimilitude. Finally, Hardy always pushed the boundaries of what was acceptable, and Two, like several of his other novels, was viciously attacked, even condemned, for undermining religion, law, and morality. Hardy's 1895 Preface notes that things had changed so much even by then that readers would be hard-pressed to find anything offensive, and Two is so superficially tame by our standards that the very idea of it causing controversy is laughable. However, time has allowed us to get past such trappings and appreciate Hardy's still unfortunately valid points about laws that are unjust and/or nonsensical, a church that is corrupt, and a society that is hypocritically prudish and optimistically self-important.

Strong as Two's core is, occasionally questionable execution keeps it well below Hardy's best. Different as it is in some ways from his other novels, it in other ways exaggerates tendencies that many always dislike in him. The plot is very dense, probably too much for many, with multiple twists in such quick procession that it is easy to dismiss the book as unbelievable. Hardy's heavy coincidence use is often noted; it is common in Victorian fiction but even more so in him, which often annoys those favoring more straightforward recent novels. However, unlike weak writers who rely on it for plot and hope we will not notice, he uses it deliberately and even draws attention to it because of his deterministic beliefs. Fans inevitably come to terms with this, but he arguably simply goes too far here, especially as he does not take as much trouble to justify it as usual. In addition, while there are no plot holes in the usual sense, some points, especially about Louis, are never explained. To be fair, it must be noted that Two has an incredible amount of suspense, far more than we expect from Victorian works. He also has a nearly scientific ability to know what we expect and do something different, which is highly admirable in any writer. On the other hand, the dialogue is also almost certainly Hardy's most artificial - so much so that it is at times nearly risible. Finally, Two is arguably a bit overly melodramatic, especially the rushed ending. Hardy later classed it as one of his "Romances and Fantasies" where realism was not consciously maintained, and his Preface admits the book was not well put together. This is partly because, in contrast to his usual practice, he did not proof the serial or revise for book publication; in addition, several differing manuscripts floated around at once, and not all changes were implemented. Hardy was usually an inveterate reviser but gave Two unusually little attention, and it shows. A thorough revision would likely have fixed at least several weaknesses, but Two is still quite strong.

All told, though Two should be no one's first Hardy novel, anyone who likes his others should certainly pick it up eventually, and those who have disliked one or two may also find it appealing.