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The Return of the Native (1878) returns readers to the fictional Edgon Heath, a quiet village on the English countryside, where a taboo tale of thwarted desire pits societal norms against humanity’s natural appetites.
Through a cast of tragic characters, Hardy constructs a web of deceit and heartbreak in the quiet village of Edgon Heath, its denizens shackled by their conflicting desires for romance and status. Eustacia Vye takes center stage, her agency and flawed ideals propelling the plot along towards its deadly conclusion. To undercut these notably modern themes and characters, the novel also retains an air of classical tragedy. The more each character struggles against their fate, the more they are ensnared by the tendrils of time, place, and action. Those who wish to leave the quiet village to live a lavish life find themselves trapped, while those who wish only to live by their good works find a tumultuous world that refuses to accept them. It is a cautionary tale, a clear warning that when ephemeral societal norms trump humanity’s fundamental drive towards passion and love, only grief will follow.
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Preface
Book One—The Three Women
I. A Face on Which Time Makes but
Little Impression 15
II. Humanity Appears upon the Scene,
Hand in Hand with Trouble 19
III. The Custom of the Country 25
IV. The Halt on the Turnpike Road 46
V. Perplexity among Honest People 51
VI. The Figure against the Sky 63
VII. Queen of Night 77
VIII. Those Who Are Found Where There
Is Said to Be Nobody 84
IX. Love Leads a Shrewd Man into Strategy 90
X. A Desperate Attempt at Persuasion 100
XI. The Dishonesty of an Honest Woman 109
Book Two—The Arrival
I. Tidings of the Comer 121
II. The People at Blooms-End
Make Ready 126
III. How a Little Sound Produced
a Great Dream 131
IV. Eustacia Is Led on to an Adventure 136
V. Through the Moonlight 146
VI. The Two Stand Face to Face 153
VII. A Coalition between Beauty
and Oddness 164
VIII. Firmness Is Discovered in a
Gentle Heart 173
Book Three—The Fascination
I. “My Mind to Me a Kingdom Is” 185
II. The New Course Causes
Disappointment 190
III. The First Act in a Timeworn Drama 199
IV. An Hour of Bliss and Many Hours
of Sadness 213
V. Sharp Words Are Spoken, and a
Crisis Ensues 221
VI. Yeobright Goes, and the Breach
Is Complete 228
VII. The Morning and the Evening of a Day 235
VIII. A New Force Disturbs the Current 249
Book Four—The Closed Door
I. The Rencounter by the Pool 259
II. He Is Set upon by Adversities but
He Sings a Song 266
III. She Goes Out to Battle against
Depression 276
IV. Rough Coercion Is Employed 288
V. The Journey across the Heath 295
VI. A Conjuncture, and Its Result upon
the Pedestrian 300
VII. The Tragic Meeting of Two Old Friends 310
VIII.Eustacia Hears of Good Fortune, and
Beholds Evil 318
Book Five—The Discovery
I.“Wherefore Is Light Given to Him
That Is in Misery” 329
II.A Lurid Light Breaks in upon a
Darkened Understanding 337
III.Eustacia Dresses Herself on a Black
Morning 347
IV.The Ministrations of a
Half-forgotten One 355
V. An Old Move Inadvertently Repeated 360
VI.Thomasin Argues with Her Cousin,
and He Writes a Letter 367
VII. The Night of the Sixth of November 374
VIII. Rain, Darkness, and Anxious Wanderers 382
IX.Sights and Sounds Draw the
Wanderers Together 392
Book Six—Aftercourses
I. The Inevitable Movement Onward 405
II.Thomasin Walks in a Green Place
by the Roman Road 414
III.The Serious Discourse of Clym
with His Cousin 418
IV.Cheerfulness Again Asserts Itself
at Blooms-End, and Clym Finds
His Vocation 423