Who would have thought it?

Although during the first 2 pages I thought a more appropriate title would be "Who would have bought it?" I'm actually quite intrigued with it now, and am quite fond of the Dr. Norval, though I question his choice in marrying such a shrewd woman. I do find it so far that the male characters seem to be far less vicious and prejudiced than the females, yet at the same time find myself sympathizing with all the female characters in their unwanted social roles. Who knew that marriage could be worse than is today? I didn't realize that book was so antiquated, until they mentioned the year directly I believed it to be more recent, because the dialogue isn't as far removed from modern speech as I would usually associate 19th century literature to be.

So far the bigotry of some characters in the novel is so profane it's difficult for me to imagine, however, I love the fact that there exists characters that do in face set themselves apart through genuine concern and proverbial mindset. Reading below I see that some don't appreciate the descriptive manner of writing in which she uses and mentioning the historical background, but I see it as a strength rather than a weakness, as the book may lose it's context should that not be included. Her storytelling stays consistent in regards to both its literary quality and its obvious historical accuracy, as it was written so quickly after such events would have transpired. I enjoy also how there are references to better explain the context of the writing. Despite the morbidity of social injustice the book conveys, I still enjoy the humour we see is evident as the neighbours gossip about each other and use mockery I think is ahead of its time.