{"product_id":"2940013254077","title":"The Strongest Master","description":"“The Strongest Master” is a classic turn-of-the-century progressive-era novel (published in 1902). With strong anti-religious, pro-labor\/women's rights social overtones, the reader is given an intimate insight into life and morals in a New England mill town at the turn of the 20th century.\u003cbr\u003e With few exceptions, all the characters in “The Strongest Master” are at variance with one another; Chris Waring loved his dear-departed mother, but has no liking for his father who is a dogmatic clergyman. Mrs. Alice Esdaile is not happy with her husband, the wealthy manufacturer Owen Esdaile. Dan Morrison, the chief foreman in Esdaile’s shoe factory, is not content with his master and benefactor who remains an enigmatic mystery to him. Dan, a character not easily understood, adores his daughter but his adoration is, perhaps, misplaced. Then there’s Aunt Lucia, who seems to be at odds with all the world. \u003cbr\u003e The reader reaches early-on the climax of Chris’s misfortunes. He is about to graduate from Harvard when he is expelled and leaves home to set things right. The young man secures a place in Esdaile’s factory as a bookkeeper. Now he falls in love with the foreman’s daughter whose father has some original ideas about marriage, social equality, worker’s rights etc. He believes that to sanction marriage by following the law of the day is wickedness — even worse than that, that the religious ceremony degrades both the man and the woman. The result is an unconventional “experimental” marriage that thickens the plot, to say the least.\u003cbr\u003e To clear up the many mysteries, what has befallen all the main characters of the story are made manifest at the conclusion. Ultimately, Chris’s desire to reform himself results in the reformation of himself and others. “The Strongest Master” may well be the power of reformation, but that is for the reader to decide.\u003cbr\u003e Now, this classic novel is available as a high-quality ebook.","brand":"Houghton Mifflin Harcourt","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47175562199280,"sku":"2940013254077","price":0.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/2940013254077_p0.jpg?v=1763578795","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/2940013254077","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}