{"product_id":"9781853262777-a-pair-of-blue-eyes","title":"A Pair of Blue Eyes","description":"\u003cmeta content=\"text\/html; charset=utf-8\" http-equiv=\"Content-Type\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eRich with biographical echoes, this novel reveals the emergence of the schematic ironies which characterise the author's later works\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWith a new Introduction by Cedric Watts, Research Professor of English, University of Sussex.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eA Pair of Blue Eyes,\u003c\/em\u003e though early in the sequence of Hardy's novels, is lively and gripping. Its dramatic cliff-hanging episode, for example, is at once tense, ironic, feministic and erotic.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWith settings in Wessex and London, the novel also has some strongly autobiographical features, as the blue-eyed heroine, Elfride Swancourt, is based largely on Emma Gifford, who became Thomas Hardy's first wife. Elfride's vivacious nature attracts several lovers, but she is beset by sexual prejudice, and the ensuing ironies reveal the constraints of her times.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eA Pair of Blue Eyes\u003c\/em\u003e provides an engaging and moving experience for today's readers.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Rarewaves","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56451620995446,"sku":"9781853262777","price":4.89,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0092\/7504\/8033\/files\/stand_33673238.jpg?v=1760463174","url":"https:\/\/www.rarewaves.com\/products\/9781853262777-a-pair-of-blue-eyes","provider":"Rarewaves.com","version":"1.0","type":"link"}