This book covers the range of Thomas Hardy's works while providing a comprehensive introduction to his life and times.

Examines how portrayals of families in Hardy's novels are used to comment on the socio-historical changes in Victorian England.

A discussion of the Victorians and their literature. It sets out the political, social and economic framework of the period, and then goes on to study the various influences on the novel, addresses the forms and styles of poetry and, finally, provides an overview of Victorian drama. Each chapter features a further reading list and there is a comparative time-line, a biographical glossary and a list of websites. The volume is part of a series which sets writers and literary works of different types and periods in their historical, social and cultural context and provides an introduction to various genres.