North and South [with Biographical Introduction]

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South Korea , country in East Asia. It occupies the southern portion of the Korean peninsula. Geologically, South Korea consists in large part of Precambrian rocks i.

The country is largely mountainous, with small valleys and narrow coastal plains. From them several mountain ranges branch off with a northeast-southwest orientation. The most important of these are the Sobaek Mountains , which undulate in a long S-shape across the peninsula. The highest peak in South Korea, the extinct volcano Mount Halla on Cheju Island , is 6, feet 1, metres above sea level.

The eastern coastline is relatively straight, whereas the western and southern have extremely complicated ria i. Streamflow is highly variable, being greatest during the wet summer months and considerably less in the relatively dry winter. Sandy and brown-coloured soils are common, and they are generally well-leached and have little humus content. Podzolic soils ash-gray forest soils , resulting from the cold of the long winter season, are found in the highlands.

The greatest influence on the climate of the Korean peninsula is its proximity to the main Asian landmass. This produces the marked summer-winter temperature extremes of a continental climate while also establishing the northeast Asian monsoons seasonal winds that affect precipitation patterns. The annual range of temperature is greater in the north and in interior regions of the peninsula than in the south and along the coast, reflecting the relative decline in continental influences in the latter areas. The coldest average monthly temperatures in winter drop below freezing except along the southern coast.

South Korea | Culture, History, and People | bahana-line.com

Annual precipitation ranges from about 35 to 60 inches to 1, mm on the mainland. Taegu , on the east coast, is the driest area, while the southern coast is the wettest; southern Cheju Island receives more than 70 inches 1, mm annually. Up to three-fifths of the annual precipitation is received in June—August, during the summer monsoon, the annual distribution being more even in the extreme south. Occasionally, late-summer typhoons tropical cyclones cause heavy showers and storms along the southern coast.

The frost-free season ranges from days in the northern highlands to more than days on Cheju Island. We welcome suggested improvements to any of our articles. You can make it easier for us to review and, hopefully, publish your contribution by keeping a few points in mind. Your contribution may be further edited by our staff, and its publication is subject to our final approval. Unfortunately, our editorial approach may not be able to accommodate all contributions. Our editors will review what you've submitted, and if it meets our criteria, we'll add it to the article.

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Page 1 of 9. Next page Plant and animal life. Learn More in these related Britannica articles: Outside Europe, the countries of South Korea , Taiwan, and China are firmly committed to construction of high-speed passenger lines. In South Korea a major line, some km miles long, is planned to run between the capital, Seoul, and the southern port of Pusan.

I have just completed reading this book for the second time and it has been even better then the first time. I'd already seen the BBC series before reading the first time so I already knew the story, and I wish I'd come to the books afresh in a way though I do not think that would have altered in anyway, the way I perceived them. Though Richard Armitage certainly does help and I swooned over Thornton even more.

What I love about North and South is the passion and the realness of the characters, th I have just completed reading this book for the second time and it has been even better then the first time. What I love about North and South is the passion and the realness of the characters, the emotion between the characters. I loved the passion of Thornton, his feelings and emotion so strong and real they almost popped off the page.

The characters aren't characters but people, and they feel real and honest, not caricatures of people or flat emotionless representations. Like Lizzie though, Margaret is a strong woman - and more fiercely independent. Both of these books would make an interesting comparison.

Both books are set in rather different times. North and South in a time when women could own property and so could be more independent. The industrial revolution was in full fledge with the rising middle class during a great time of progress. The railway made it easier for people of all classes to move about.

North and South is a love story that takes place on the background of two conflicts - the class conflict between the North and the South, and the conflict between the mill owners and the trade unions. Mr Thornton is a tradesman from Milton really Manchester and Margaret is the daughter of a parson from the New Forest. She has grown up for most of her latter path of childhood in Harley Street, London.

When Margaret's father decides to leave his job as parson of Helstone in the New Forest over a crisis of conscience he takes his family to Milton to start a new life as a tutor. One of his favourite pupils is the mill owner, Mr Thornton who is brusque and does not have the manners of the south.

There was a great snobbery about tradesmen - even though money-wise Thornton was richer then the Hales - he was still a tradesman rather then a perceived gentleman. And through misunderstandings of each others manners and ways, Margaret and Mr Thornton often find themselves at opposing sides of the argument. Meanwhile, she also befriends Nicholas Higgins, a passionate mill worker who is behind the trade union strikes. I much prefer North and South to Pride and Prejudice, though both are so different from each other in many ways.

Gaskell is a bit more worldly, having been married, lived in the North and having a wider circle of friends. Her father was also a dissenter who left the church on grounds of consciousness, a theme I have noticed popping up in her other stories. My Lady Ludlow springs to mind. So North and South has a much more wider perspective. I think in the end though, what makes a novel good, what makes a good author - is their ability to create characters that feel so real you can almost tough them. If the characters are flat, then so will the rest of the story even with a brilliant plot - it is the characters that make a story.

Margaret Hale and John Thornton are two people that live on in my imagination. View all 40 comments. Update June 16, I watched the BBC production this past week and it was outstanding! I highly recommend pairing the book with the movie. The movie adds that extra bit of magic that I found didn't come across as well in the writing alone. Yes, I did need to fan myself on several occasions - thank you Richard Armitage.

About three or four years ago I Update June 16, I know, thank goodness for Goodreads or I would forever remain in a state of ignorance! I did not expect to become absolutely smitten with both the novel and its characters. Finally, I have gotten around to reading another. I will start out by saying that I truly enjoyed and appreciated this work of fiction.

Set in England during the time of the Industrial Revolution, North and South tackles some of the major economic and social issues of the time. Gaskell earnestly depicts the differences between the north of England and the south of England both geographically as well as through her characters. She is sympathetic to both, realizing that each depend upon a mutual understanding in order to thrive. When she moves back to the relative tranquility and more modest living of her parents' home in Helstone, she quickly adapts to her new surroundings.

However, when her father decides to leave his position as minister of this small hamlet and uproots the family to the manufacturing town of Milton in the north of England, neither Margaret nor her mother are at all keen about this sudden upheaval. Margaret brings along some of her preconceived notions and prejudices to Milton: I'm sure you don't want me to admire butchers and bakers, and candlestick-makers, do you, mamma? Hale, strikes up a friendship with the self-made industrialist John Thornton.

Margaret and Thornton, on the other hand, clash immediately. But it is through this antagonism that each grows and learns from the other. Thornton is a man who at first appears hard and uncompromising. Like the others of his profession, he remains stolidly apart from his subordinates.

Margaret eventually befriends millworker Nicholas Higgins and his ailing daughter, Bessy, whose lungs have been permanently damaged from her work in the factory. This newfound friendship changes Margaret from one contemptuous towards the working class to one that becomes an advocate of social justice. She has found new meaning to her life. It was not the long, bleak sunny days of spring, nor yet was it that time was reconciling her to the town of her habitation.

It was that in it she had found a human interest. This is a book that I would not hesitate to recommend to anyone that is fond of classic Victorian literature. It is a novel of tremendous self-discovery and excellent character development — particularly in the protagonists, Margaret and Thornton. It is an interesting and worthy depiction of the Industrial Revolution in England.

It did not quite soar to the level of Wives and Daughters for me personally, perhaps slightly lacking in the magical charm of that beloved treasure.

I also love a dash of wit sprinkled into my classic literature as well and did not quite find that here. I have a copy of the BBC production sitting on my coffee table just begging to be watched. I anticipate a huge swoon fest with that one! I mean, seriously, who can resist Richard Armitage?! His voice alone is enough to make a fairly reasonable girl turn giddy.

Maybe an update to the review on that later. View all 68 comments. I must say that I was prejudiced against it before starting, and have to swallow my pride and admit I was wrong! I thought it would be a dry copy cat version of Hard Times , as the circumstances of its publication seemed to suggest that. But never trust your prejudices - that is what I learned from reading this highly entertaining and original story, and it "Pride and Prejudice" wouldn't have been a bad title for this comparative study of English society in the midst of the Industrial Revolution.

But never trust your prejudices - that is what I learned from reading this highly entertaining and original story, and it also constitutes the enduring message of the unfolding plot. A clash of cultures in miniature, between the traditional life style and manners of the South, and the raw, harsh, booming manufacturer ways of the North, it offers plenty of opportunities to play on different layers of pride and prejudice. The charm lies in the fact that each social group has its own code of honour, and feels contempt towards all other groups within English society.

Margaret Hale and her parents, representing the South, despise the rough and straightforward behaviour of the rich and thrifty manufacturing people, and consider their education lacking and their company uninspiring. The North, on the other hand, represented by Mr Thornton and his family, sees the South as lethargic, sponging, and useless, and admires its own masculine strength, wealth and action. Both privileged classes, Northern and Southern alike, despise simple workers and their ideas, as well as servants and women in general. That is also reciprocal, and Elizabeth Gaskell brilliantly shows the arrogance and pride of workers, whose contempt for the manufacturers is just as strong as vice versa.

Higgins, a passionate Unionist, takes pride in the organisation of a strike in exactly the same way that Thornton celebrates his ability to solve the issue to his own advantage. Pride and prejudice - all over the place. The slowly developing love story is threatened by the same problem. Rather than speaking openly to each other, both Thornton and Margaret choose to make up their own prejudiced minds on the behaviour of the unconsciously loved antagonist, and to proudly refuse any clarification of ensuing misunderstandings- until the very end.

It sounds quite bleak, and the novel certainly does not paint midth century life in idealistic colours, but Gaskell offers a solution to the social paralysis - on an individual level. What breaks the barrier of prejudice? As soon as Margaret understands the life of the people in the mill town Milton, she learns to respect it. When Thornton and Unionist Higgins get to know each other, and spend time together, prejudice changes into mutual respect, based on true understanding of the other person's perspective.

Knowledge and communication are the best weapons against prejudice - in the novel, and in real life. And what destroys pride? As soon as the characters realise they will lose what or whom they love, they are willing to overcome their pride and take a step outside their comfort zone. What Higgins refuses to do out of principle, he does out of love and compassion. And the same applies to Thornton and Margaret. It is possible to argue that Gaskell doesn't find a general solution for the clash of interests during the Industrial Revolution, and that she relies on strong personalities to step outside their social boundaries and reach out rather than on creating a social idea that works independently.

That was my first thought. But then I reconsidered, and thought that it is precisely individual enthusiasm and willingness to make a change that puts social development in motion. No idea, and no theory are worth anything without people with an open heart, who see humanity in people who are entirely different from their usual environment and social training.

True open mindedness starts with understanding the "other side" and with being curious to learn more about new perspectives. Individual effort pays off - in the long run. That is a stimulating and positive message! View all 33 comments. Civil War miniseries when all we've been talking about is Jane Austen? So the DVDs got lost in the depths of my entertainment center and I never watched them. So I dug out the DVDs and blew off the dust. Sure enough, they contain Richard Armitage, not Patrick Swayze.

So I confessed to her she got a good laugh out of it and I've actually both watched the DVDs now and read the book, which I had never heard of before I joined Goodreads, so thanks, GR friends! North and South was originally called Margaret , but luckily Charles Dickens, Elizabeth Gaskell's mentor, changed her mind. It's been called "an industrial Pride and Prejudice ," and that's really not a bad description. Most of the characters have pride in themselves and their own piece of English culture, and prejudice against those whose ways are different, and this is epitomized by the conflict between northern and southern ways of life in the novel.

Margaret Hale is from the South of England, where the landed gentry and aristocracy are based; John Thornton is from the North city of Milton based on Manchester , a center of the industrial revolution, with self-made men and workers who are starting to unionize. Margaret's family is forced, by their reduced circumstances, to move to Milton when her father dissents from the Church of England and leaves his living as a pastor to become a tutor.

Thornton, a cotton mill owner, is one of Mr. Hale's students, and at first he and Margaret strike sparks off each other in all the wrong ways, although Thornton at least is very attracted to Margaret, who isn't like any woman he's ever come across before in his life. But both of them are prejudiced in favor of their own way of life and against the other's. Thornton,' she said, collapsing into a determined silence, and angry with herself for having said so much.

Gaskell explores industrialization, the unionization movement and the changing lives of all of the characters.

South Korea

I could spend a long time talking about how she weaves in themes of prejudice, understanding, power and a person's duty to those he or she has power over, and the roles of women and men in society. Let's just say that Gaskell was a very advanced thinker for her time. Others have quibbled over the ending of the book, and I agree that it would have been nice to read more about view spoiler [the relationship of Margaret and John once they finally get together hide spoiler ] , but I think from a literary and thematic point of view the ending is perfect: There are some fantastic discussions and analysis of the book and its events, characters and themes in the North and South GR group threads: YouTube video of the last 6 minutes of the miniseries: I need hardly say that it's all kinds of spoilerish View all 51 comments.

Painful at times, and adorable at others. Margaret came to the industrial town of Milton from Haleston, a village. Her father who is a parson took Mr. Thornton as his student. Soon Margaret and Mr. Thornton find themselves on the opposite side of wall which has poor people on one side and rich on the other. Thornton realizes early on about his feelings for Margaret but as a proud and arrogant girl, she refused to see the utter devotion with which he loves her.

Later on she came to sense but it was too late by then and she was on her way to other town and thousands of pounds richer. Gaskell shows us the strife of poor in those days of industrialization when almost everyone was struggling financially in the town of Milton.

In my she sided with the poor but also showed us the side where rich were equally struggling to meet ends. She very cleverly has knitted this love story with social issue of that time. Characters have fault but humans are tend to have them and that's what makes this book so dear to me. Highly recommended if you can bear the slow pace, and the tug of war between rich and poor. View all 5 comments.

Fans of 19th century lit in general. I can't quite put my finger on why I love this book quite as much as I do. And even for someone who does re-read books as much as I do, to get through 3 copies of one book is quite a feat. For me, the most remarkable achievement of Gaskell is that she is able to combine so many elements of various 19th century novelistic traditions and yet not have the novel collapse into incomprehensibility. The broad scope of the novel, coupled with insightful depth and comment means that each reading of the bo I can't quite put my finger on why I love this book quite as much as I do.

The broad scope of the novel, coupled with insightful depth and comment means that each reading of the book can offer something new. Read it as a straight forward or not love story, a fictional romantic biography. Then discover the class politics that run through the novel.

Or perhaps the debate as the title suggests between the rapidly industrialising north and the more gentrified south. Or the sexual and gender politics that create a constant thematic pulse throughout the book Or any other matter you choose to seek out from religion to the nature of authority and so on and so forth. There is so much to be gained from the many directions in which this book can pull you: I personally have often come away from the book wanting to follow up on points raised, to examine the history behind the work.

Or, if in a romantic mood, I will find snippets of prose or dialogue floating around my head. Their story is successful because they are believable: Margaret, especially, is an engaging heroine: Criticisms I have heard against the book have numbered the following: Obviously, to enjoy this book you need to familiarise and accept the conventions of the 19th century novel i. After all, that's how the escapism occurs!

North and South is no more dry and in my personal opinion a lot less dry than Dickens, far less emotional than the heated Villette, and certainly as believable as anything written by Austen, Shelley or the Brontes. Indeed, Gaskell is more firmly tied to realism via her evocation of working class Manchester. And in terms of Gaskell owing much in style to, say Dickens, that is no great suprise: Gaskell was similarly writing in serialised format, and Dickens edited much of North and South. But owing a stylistic debt to another artist is not an indicator of lack of artistic merit: Essentially then, this is a book that continues to keep giving and at the very least will provide a very pleasant few hours of escapism into another marvellously pictured world.

View all 4 comments. North and South sounds like it should be about social and geographic divisions, but it's actually about finding balance amidst constant change. Although I found her character annoyingly reactive, the Miss Hale of the novel is decidedly less silly than she of the movie. I've read comparisons of Mr. Thornton to Jane Austen's Mr. Darcy, but I don't personally see much likeness--aside from I read this because I'd seen the BBC production, and wondered if Margaret Hale would be less silly in the book. Darcy, but I don't personally see much likeness--aside from a tendency to scowl.

I actually preferred the BBC's Mr. Thornton, as he talked less and scowled more than Mr. Thornton in the book. Plus, he was played by Richard Armitage, which is never a bad thing.

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My favorite characters are Mrs. Thornton's strict, severe mother , and Mr. Bell Miss Hale's rich godfather. Thornton has more sense and self-control than all the other characters in the book combined, and Mr. Bell is the only person with a sense of humor. Miss Hale bounces back admirably from all the deaths and strife that the author inflicts on her. I would have appreciated more of Mr.

Bell's levity, and a tad less angst from Mr. Thornton, but I was completely immersed in Miss Hale's world and find myself missing it now that I've finished the book. I know that there are probably many details that I miss entirely, some nuances that go straight over my head, but these are my thoughts Margaret Hale's father has been the spiritual leader of his community of Helston for decades. Now he questions his faith While Margaret herself has been living among high society with her aunt for the last years, when her father decides to leave the church and uproot his family, she moves with her mother and father to the Northern city of Milton.

But there are also the poor, the underfed, the "little guys" who work in those factories day after day just to make enough to feed their families. Margaret's first impression of Milton is not a good one, and her prejudice about her new home town is made known to any who will listen. And while there were time that Margaret's prejudice really grated my nerves, she grows so much as a person during the course of this story that it's next to impossible not to empathize with her. Both of her parents seem to be weak in character, leaning so heavily on their daughter and giving her so much emotional responsibility as to question who the parents are.

What did they do while she was away from them? By the end of the book I have had no youth - no womanhood; the hopes of womanhood have closed for me - for I shall never marry; and I anticipate cares and sorrows just as if I were an old woman, and with the same fearful spirit. I am weary of this continual call upon me for strength. Hale has taken up tutoring those who wish to learn. One of his student is John Thornton, who happens to be one of the richer men in Milton.

These are two very strong personalities, people with rigid convictions who aren't afraid of speaking their mind Still, Thornton has a fascination with the outspoken Margaret. Her quiet coldness of demeanor he interpreted into contemptuousness, and resented it in his heart to the pitch of almost inclining him to get up and go away, and have nothing more to do with these Hales, and their superciliousness.

Margaret also wages a subtle battle with herself in regard to her feelings for Thornton This was a frustrating aspect of the book for me. Thornton is a very kind man. He reveals his difficult childhood to Margaret, he becomes a very good friend of her father's, and shows the Hales every courtesy he can, despite their fairly low status in society. And yet Margaret takes her sweet time coming to terms with the fact that he's a very good person.

Factories needed workers, and often those workers were treated no better than animals. The threat of a strike is ever present. And a strike in those days, when no work meant no food, was much more violent than what it means today. Deplorable, dangerous, and inhumane working conditions led to chronic illness and death for many of the employees. One such family portrayed in this book is the Higgins family. Nicholas, the father, and Bess and Mary, his daughters, are a huge part of the story. Not only are they fast friends of Margaret's, but Bess has some sort of sickness of the lungs from which she is dying.

Her friendship with Margaret and her faith in God when every one around her is faithless is heartwarming and heartbreaking all at once. Tragedy is ever present in this novel. Death comes to everyone, but it seemed to come an awful lot for the people in Margaret's life during the two plus years that she is in Milton. It looked more peaceful than life Relationships can be formed with people from all walks of life, and it's those relationships that shape who you are.

Margaret starts off resigned to her fate, living in this dirty, loud city with these boisterous, rude people. Her character development is by leaps and bounds and huge revelations. Thornton, above all people, on whom she had looked down from her imaginary heights till now! She suddenly found herself at his feet, and was strangely distressed at her fall. After this epic journey of self discovery, to end a book in the middle of one of the most powerful scenes was a bit of a downer. And here's where I can tout the miniseries from which all of the pictures in this review came from.

Rarely do I like a movie more than the book that it is about, but I sure did in this case! I'm glad that I read the book first, for sure. But the movie clarified some of my questions and romanticized the story enough for me to relate to it a bit more. It's considered a public domain book, so you can download it at Project Gutenberg here: View all 86 comments. May 10, Olive abookolive rated it it was amazing Shelves: I could cry I'm so disappointed it's over. View all 6 comments.

Prelepi klasik po kome je pre nekoliko godina snimljena nova serija koja je bozanstvena, onako kako samo Britanci umeju da urade serije i filmove po svojim klasicima Ova autorka je kod nas uglavnom ignorisana od izdavaca North and South is the only Gaskell I have read so far. I first read this after watching the BBC TV series a thing I really should not have done and the overall impression I got was that this was a love story. However I liked the book very much and this prompted my reread this year.

But on the second read, I'm surprised to find this to be otherwise. I mean, there is still a love story but that is not all. It is also about the clash of southern and northern ideas and the clash of working class North and South is the only Gaskell I have read so far. It is also about the clash of southern and northern ideas and the clash of working class people and their masters.

Margaret Hale, full of southern pride, finds herself suddenly placed in a northern industrial city. Having entertained a strong prejudice against the tradesmen, she views the northern mill owners to be similar uncouth men. Her pride and the misconceived notions mar her better judgement and she forms an instant dislike for Mr.

This dislike was mutual initially but Mr. Thornton goes through gradual change; and although he dislikes her haughty ways, he slowly learns to appreciate her for her true qualities. Margaret, though not as quickly as Mr. Thornton, too goes through this gradual change and learns to appreciate who he truly is.

Gaskell's idea of bringing these two characters, as I see, is twofold.

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First, through these characters, one from south and other from north, she shows us how the different views, beliefs and misconceptions of the two ends were reconciled. The southerners saw the industrial northern cities as noisy, smoky and full of uncouth people while the northerners saw the south as full of idle people who lacked action and also depth. It was interesting to see how Gaskell expressed these clashing views of both ends through her main characters, and the final reconciliation of the two was more as a reconciliation of North and South where both sides come to understand and respect each different ways.

Second is, of course, the obvious reason of filling a love story. Although Gaskell succeeded brilliantly in the former, I felt she failed quite a bit in the latter. The romance was, for the most part of the book, was one sided. Thornton loved Margaret regardless of her rejection and also regardless of her disdain towards him. Margaret slowly discovers who he actually is and learns to respect his qualities and eventually falls in love.

But while Gaskell expresses very fluently the feelings of Mr. Thornton, that eloquence was not employed in the case of Margaret; and so when Margaret did fall in love finally, I felt it was rather forced. Maybe it is my fault for having watched the BBC series before reading. On to the theme of "master" and "hand" workmen relationship, Gaskell stresses the importance of creating an amenable setting between the two classes to achieve greater productivity. Higgins and Thornton have been used for this end, and it was really interesting to read the clash of these two classes through the two strong characters.

Overall, it was an interesting reread and I think I enjoyed it more this time. View all 13 comments. I came to this novel, as is the case for many readers, through the BBC television adaptation, which I watched for the first time earlier this year. While I had not consciously avoided the novel and its adaptation until now, it's probably the case that I have been unconsciously avoiding Victorian fiction for some years, preferring the less ponderous novels of the earlier 19th century particularly Austen and the leaner style of 20th century fiction.

There are a lot of words — way more than is needed to simply tell the tale — and the tale itself has its share of sentimentality and melodrama. But I loved every word of the book and every overblown feeling that those words expressed. I listened to the novel in audiobook format, narrated by Juliet Stevenson. As is to be expected, the quality of the narration is superb. Stevenson flawlessly brings each character distinctly to life.

At the heart of North and South is the relationship between the two main protagonists: They have different backgrounds, different attitudes and different sensibilities. They represent different worlds — she the world of the gentry from the agrarian and intellectual south of England, he the self-made men of the industrial north. They meet, they clash, they misunderstand each other. For the relationship to ultimately be resolved, they have to find a point of balance, a place of harmony, where the prejudices engendered by their differing backgrounds can give way to a new way of thinking and acting.

The difficulties in the relationship of Margaret Hale and John Thornton are played out against the turmoil of 19th century England. Gaskell weaves into the novel the differences in attitude between the north and the south of the country, the conflict between capitalists and labour and the shifts in class and gender relations. This sense of change — change happening very fast, change that has to be coped with in order for the characters to survive — is a thread running through the novel.

Margaret Hale in particular experiences extreme changes in her life and in her attitudes over the time span of the novel.

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