Far From the Madding Crowd

Summary (from the publisher): Set in his fictional Wessex countryside in southwest England, Far from the Madding Crowd was Thomas Hardy's breakthrough work. Though it was first published anonymously in 1874, the quick and tremendous success of Far from the Madding Crowd persuaded Hardy to give up his first profession, architecture, to concentrate on writing fiction. The story of the ill-fated passions of the beautiful Bathsheba Everdene and her three suitors offers a spectacle of country life brimming with an energy and charm not customarily associated with Hardy.

 

Review: Bathsheba Everdene is a beautiful and charismatic young woman whose fortunes are reversed when she suddenly inherits a prosperous farm from her late uncle in the fictional Wessex in southwest England. Bathsheba, who is willful and impetuous, is pursued by three very different suitors: Gabriel Oak is a common man who makes his living as a shepherd. He meets Bathsheba before she receives her inheritance. Ironically, their fortunes are reversed, for around the same time Bathsheba inherits her farm, Gabrial loses his whole flock of sheep and must resort to hiring his services out to a farm - which ends up belonging to Bathsheba. The second suitor is William Boldwood, a wealthy, confirmed bachelor who owns a nearby farm. When Bathsheba carelessly sends him a spontaneous valentine card asking him to marry her, Boldwood becomes enraptured with the young woman. Finally, Bathsheba is pursued by Sergeant Francis "Frank" Troy, a youthful and irrestible rake, who is able to charm women and make them abandon their good judgment.

 

Although at the heart of this novel, and the source of much heartache and turmoil, Bathsheba is largely a distant figure for the reader, only seen at a remove. Much of the novel is seen from the perspective of her suitors, primarily Gabriel. Bathsheba is isolated by her gender, her superior position as owner of her own farm, and through her own choice to seclude herself with her maid Liddy. Yet even from a distance, and despite her vanity and her capricious nature, Bathsheba is a beguiling presence who reels in three very different men. One of the first scenes in which she appears is when Gabriel observes her gracefully reclining on her horse: "The girl, who wore no riding-habit, looked around for a moment, as if to assure herself that all humanity was out of view, then dexterously dropped backwards flat upon the pony's back, her head over its tail, her feet against its shoulders, and her eyes to the sky. The rapidity of her glide into this position was that of a kingfisher - its noiselessness that of a hawk" (65). Despite Gabriel's earnest proposal of marriage to the girl, clearly done with the best attentions and with an aim at a loving marriage ("And at home by the fire, whenever you look up, there I shall be - and whenever I look up, there will be you" (79)), Bathsheba scorns Gabriel.

 

Throughout the novel is a repeated theme - Bathsheba's foolishness leading to disappointments and calamity, with little sign of guilt or regret from Bathsheba herself. Only her appeal and charm keep her largely in the good graces of her three suitors who really have every reason to grow tired of her impulsive behavior and frequent rejections. Bathsheba seems to have inherited this charisma from her mother, who so enthralled her husband that "he used to light the candle three times a night to look at her" (110). However, Bathsheba finally meets her match in Troy, who is perhaps more charming than she, although his charm is coupled with a devious dark side.

 

Although this novel has a largely happy conclusion, it is full of tragedy and heartbreak. The plot's success is intertwined and dependent on the rural landscape in which it is set and which contributes to the heartbreak and toil the characters must endure. This novel features vivid and lengthy descriptions of life in the countryside, painstakingly detailing the immense workloads and isolation, as well as the frequent cruelty of nature.  This is a world deeply embedded within the cycle of the seasons. One's duties and role are often determined by nature's whim, as evidenced by the ebbing and flowing nature of both Gabriel and Bathsheba's fortunes. A masterful novel of characters at the whim of both their own folly and nature's capriciousness.

 

Stars: 4