Fingersmith by Sarah Waters
Published 2002 · 560 pages · 207,821 words · about 18 hours at an average pace · Literary Fiction, Neo-Victorian Fiction, Historical Fiction, Queer Fiction
How hard is Fingersmith to read?
Fingersmith scores 71 out of 100 for difficulty on ReadingRate, making it very challenging. The score is a weighted composite of nine measures: four of how hard the prose is to parse, five of how hard the meaning is to extract.
- Vocabulary: 68 out of 100
- The text is rich with period-specific London slang and criminal argot, such as 'poke,' 'prigging,' 'fencing-man,' and 'fingersmith,' which require contextual understanding. While not as obscure as 'Finnegans Wake,' this specialized vocabulary makes it more challenging than accessible contemporary fiction, placing it above '2666' in this regard.
- Sentence structure: 60 out of 100
- Sentences are frequently long and complex, often employing multiple clauses connected by conjunctions and semicolons, reflecting a conversational yet detailed narrative style. However, the prose maintains a clear, linear structure without the extreme hypotaxis or experimental forms found in works like 'Ulysses' or 'The Golden Bowl,' making it navigable despite its length.
- Abstraction: 68 out of 100
- While grounded in concrete Victorian-era details and a vivid criminal underworld, the narrative frequently delves into the protagonist's deep internal reflections on love, morality, identity, and fate. Sue's philosophical observations on the world and her evolving emotional landscape elevate the text beyond simple social realism, though it stops short of the pure abstraction of works like 'The Waste Land.'
- Information density: 72 out of 100
- The excerpt is packed with intricate plot details, a large cast of characters, specific period customs, and the complex mechanics of a con, all interwoven with the narrator's internal monologue. This demands sustained attention to track the numerous concepts and developments, creating a rich texture that is denser than 'The Great Gatsby' but less overwhelming than 'Finnegans Wake.'
- Narrative indirection: 78 out of 100
- Sue's first-person narration is deeply unreliable, as she frequently misinterprets Maud's true feelings and her own emotional responses, forcing the reader to actively infer meaning. Her initial confidence in the con's simplicity and Maud's 'pigeon' nature is gradually undermined, culminating in a dramatic realization of Maud's fear and Sue's complex attachment, requiring constant re-evaluation of the narrative. This demands a high degree of reader inference, akin to constructing thematic connections from biased perspectives as in 'Flights'.
- Symbolic density: 80 out of 100
- The text is rich with pervasive and explicitly integrated symbolism. The title 'Fingersmith' itself acts as a central motif for thievery and manipulation, extended through detailed descriptions of hands, locks, and keys. Clothing, particularly Maud's crinoline as a 'cage' and Sue's servant dress, symbolizes social confinement and performance, while animal imagery (pigeons, slugs, lobsters) frequently serves as metaphors for characters' vulnerabilities and roles. This dense symbolic layer requires consistent interpretation beyond the literal plot events.
- Ironic distance: 75 out of 100
- A strong ironic distance is maintained through Sue's limited and often self-deceiving perspective, which the author subtly exposes to the reader. Sue's internal thoughts and stated beliefs are frequently contrasted with the underlying reality of the con and her own developing emotions, creating a gap between appearance and truth. This constant interplay of surface and subtext, where characters perform roles and the narrator misjudges, demands a critical reading similar to the unreliable charm of 'Lolita'.
- Resolution withholding: 70 out of 100
- The excerpt concludes with significant emotional and moral ambiguity, despite the plot's progression towards the planned elopement. Sue's internal conflict—her unacknowledged love for Maud, her hatred for Gentleman, and her complicity in the scheme—remains unresolved, leaving the reader to grapple with the ethical implications. The impending 'madhouse' fate for Maud is presented with dread rather than closure, resisting a clear-cut emotional or thematic resolution.
- Structural complexity: 60 out of 100
- The narrative's primary structural complexity arises from its first-person unreliable narrator, Sue, whose evolving understanding and self-deception significantly shape the reader's experience. While the timeline is largely linear, Sue's retrospective reflections and internal shifts in perception create layers of interpretation. The explicit 'Part 1' and chapter breaks hint at a larger, multi-perspective structure in the full work, but within this excerpt, the complexity is mainly psychological and perceptual.
How Fingersmith is regarded
Fingersmith holds a literary regard score of 58 out of 100, weighing its place in the canon, its critical reception, its influence on other writers, and the standing of its author. Regard is measured separately from difficulty: a demanding book is not necessarily an admired one.