FAR FROM THE MADDING CROWD

Far from the Madding Crowd

Far from the Madding Crowd

The Story

Gabriel Oak was a small-scale farmer, but his honesty, integrity, and ability had won him the respect of all of his neighbors. When he heard that a young woman named Bathsheba Everdene had moved into the neighborhood, he went out of his way to see her and fell immediately in love. Gabriel was the kind of man who had to look only once to know that he had found the right woman. After seeing her only a few times, he went to her aunt, for whom Bathsheba worked, and asked for the girl's hand in marriage. Although he was refused, he felt that it was the relative, not Bathsheba, who had denied him.

A short time later, Gabriel's sheepdog became excited and chased his flock of sheep over a cliff, killing them all. Ruined, Gabriel had to give up his farm and go elsewhere to find work. On his way across the country, he passed a burning barn and ran to aid the men fighting the flames. After the fire had been put out, the owner of Weatherbury Farm arrived, and it was suggested that Gabriel be hired as shepherd in return for the fine work he had done. To his surprise, the owner of the farm was Bathsheba Everdene, who had recently inherited the place from her uncle. Gabriel became her shepherd. He was struck by the change in their positions in such a short while. Now Bathsheba was landowner, and Gabriel was the servant. (Bullen, 1987 , pp.45-67 )

On his way to his new quarters, Gabriel met a girl standing in the woods. She spoke to him and asked him not to say that he had seen her, and he promised to keep silent. The next morning while working at his new job, he heard that Fanny Robin, one of Bathsheba's maids, had disappeared, and he rightly guessed that Fanny was the girl he had met. It was suspected that she had gone off to meet a soldier who had been stationed in the area a short time before. This suspicion was correct. Fanny had gone to find Sergeant Troy at his new station, for he had promised to marry her if she came to him. A date was set for the wedding, but Fanny went to the wrong church. When she finally found Troy, he refused to make arrangements for a marriage a second time.

Bathsheba was a good manager, and Weatherbury Farm prospered; but she had her caprices. One of these was to send an anonymous valentine to William Boldwood, a conservative, serious man who was her neighbor. Boldwood was upset by the valentine, especially after he learned that Gabriel had recognized Bathsheba's handwriting. The more Boldwood saw of Bathsheba, however, the more deeply he fell in love with her. One day during the sheep washing, he asked her to marry him, but she refused his ...