Book Review of Far From the Madding Crowd

Far From the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy starts with a young Shepherd named Gabriel Oak who lived in Weatherbury. At first, he leads a stable life but meets a woman named Bathsheba Everdene and feels somewhat attracted to her. However, his dog chased the sheep zealously off a cliff, killing them. Without money, he went to work for Bathsheba, who inherited a large sum of money from her uncle and now had a manor, a large farm, and several servants. He and the other workers got along well. Then, Bathsheba decided to play an old Bible game to determine who she would marry. She ended up sending a letter to a wealthy man in the same town named William Boldwood. At first, Mr. Boldwood felt affection for Bathsheba, but was ultimately rejected in favor of a young army officer named Sergeant Troy. However, as it turned out, Troy was a liar to women, and only married Bathsheba for her money, while he really was in love with Fanny Robin, one of the lady’s servants. Fanny died of illness as she was too poor to afford a doctor, and Troy tried to drown himself out of misery. However, he was rescued and returned. By then, most of Weatherbury considered him dead, and Bathsheba was in love with Gabriel. Upon Troy’s return, Boldwood shoots him dead and is arrested, leaving the young couple free to marry.

Social classes are a common way of judging people, hence why many wish to move to classes farther up if possible. Marriage is the easiest way of moving upwards on the social ladder, and is sometimes abused to gain quick money. The three social climbers in the story were Bathsheba, Gabriel, and Sgt. Troy. Bathsheba initially was poor and had to work as a farmhand, but received an inheritance from her uncle and became a mistress. Gabriel at first was in the middle class, as he owned a hut, tools needed for living, and a large herd of sheep. However, disaster struck as his dog was inspired by its meal of lamb and chased all the sheep off a cliff, destroying the herd. Gabriel had to work for Bathsheba and moved up to the middle class. Later, he married Bathsheba and became part of the wealthy class. Meanwhile, Troy worked in the army and was poor. Due to his excellent manipulation skills and attractiveness, he seduced Bathsheba and used this to get lots of money. The three social climbers had different methods of becoming wealthy. Bathsheba inherited money from her relatives, Gabriel simply worked hard and eventually married Bathsheba, while Troy relied on manipulation to make Bathsheba fall in love with him. There are different methods of climbing the social ladder.

Marriage is too often based on money and not true love. Children of wealthy families are often expected to marry other successful people. Many of the love relationships in the novel were between those of the same social class. Boldwood was interested in marrying Everdene, though not because of the fact that they were both rich. Gabriel’s marriage to Everdene was normal as well, since they were both in the upper class by the end of the story. Fanny and Troy were in love, and they were both poor when they fell in love. However, Troy did cheat on her with Bathsheba, because the latter had a large sum of money, and Troy wanted a share of it. He still had feelings for Fanny, but pretended to love Bathsheba and did everything to manipulate her. Unfortunately, he was successful. Thankfully, Bathsheba did catch a feeling that something was off. When Troy started traveling to be an actor after being rescued, he did try to return to Bathsheba and take back his status. Marriage can sometimes be based on money, not love, such as in the case of Troy marrying Bathsheba. When Troy was gone for days, Bathsheba actually felt free rather than sad, because Troy had been manipulating her into marrying him for her fortune. Marriages based on money collapse, while those based on true love endure.

In the past, women were encouraged to find a husband, hopefully a rich one to bring wealth to their family. Nowadays, they are expected to take care of housework, but still not to work outside or take care of family finances. Bathsheba defied expectations of females during her time. She was independent, smart, and hardworking. She helped with the farmwork and traveled on her own. These behaviors would have been unthinkable during the Victorian Era. Additionally, she married based on love, not money or familial/societal pressure. Bathsheba also had a large sum of money, which was unusual, since in the 1800s daughters almost never inherited money, as people wanted sons to receive their fortunes, as they would pass on the family name to the estate. As for Fanny, she was also hardworking and intelligent, but not as much as Bathsheba, for she failed to see through Troy’s facade. Unfortunately for her, she was poor, unlike her former mistress and thus couldn’t afford a doctor when she was sick. Bathsheba and Fanny both defied societal expectations. They were intelligent and hardworking, something that wasn't expected of women during their times. Bathsheba owned her own farm and was wealthy, which was unusual due to the fact that men would pass on the family name and thus were chosen for inheritance. Women are often expected to play a passive role in the family.

Far From the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy takes place during the middle of the Victorian Era and in a small town called Weatherbury. Gabriel is a shepherd who, in a tragic accident, loses all of his sheep to his dog. He is forced to seek work from a lady named Bathsheba Everdene, who owns a large farm and a manor after inheriting it from her uncle. Bathsheba decides to pursue a love life and falls in love with a young man named Francis ‘Frank’ Troy, who was a sergeant in the army. However, Troy seems to exhibit some signs of cheating on her, the most important of which was when Bathsheba found that he had a lock of hair that was a different color from hers. That lock of hair later turned out to be Fanny Robin’s, one of Bathsheba’s old servants. Troy almost drowned when his true love, Fanny, died, but was rescued by a ship crew and had to work abroad for a living. After almost a year he went back to reclaim his status but was shot dead by another man, and Bathsheba fell in love with Gabriel. This story teaches us several themes. First, people are sometimes so motivated to move up the social ladder that sometimes they do anything for it. Second, Marriage is sometimes formed when one partner simply wants the other’s money. Finally, many expect women to play a passive role in the family.