Thyrza — George R. Gissing

Originally published in 1887, Gissing intended 'Thryza' to 'contain the very spirit of London working-class life'. His story tells of Walter Egremont, an Oxford-trained idealist who gives lectures on literature to the workers in his father's Lambeth factory. Thryza Trent, a young hat-trimmer, attends the lectures and falls in love with Walter, forsaking Gilbert Grail, an intelligent working man.