THE RETURN OF THE NATIVE
Hardy has given a significant title to this chapter. Human beings appear on the scene and are surrounded by troubles. We are introduced to a retired naval officer (Captain Vye), and to a reddleman (Diggory Venn). The reddleman, described in favorable terms here, as a man with a pre-possessing exterior, is basically a business-man who supplies red colour to the farmers to dye their sheep. He is a man not much inclined to talk, as he does not disclose the girl's identity and by doing so he shows a certain delicacy of feeling and certain decency. This has aroused our curiosity about the identity of the girl and her predicament.
Chapter III : The Custom of the Country. Commemoration of Guy Fawke's Day
The crowd, that had gathered on the barrow were boys and men from neighboring villages who made a pile of their furze faggots and set them on fire. It was a bonfire which could now be seen burning at various places within the hounds of the entire district. The bonfires are the direct remnants of ancient druidical rites and Saxon ceremonies, though the custom commonly believed was the commemoration of the gunpowder plots. The fire also symbolizes a spontaneous, promethean rebelliousness against the coming of winter, the season that bring coldness, Misery and death.Another important character is introduced Wildeve and his failure to marry Thomasin. His behavior towards Thomasin is rather casual. he doesn't seem to be deeply in love with Thomasin. We are not yet able to form a clear idea about Wildeve as his decision at the end of the chapter to respond to the signal creates another suspicion in our mind. He seems to be having another affair too.
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Chapter VI: The Figure against the Sky. A Lone Female' Figure
When the crowd had left the site of the bonfire on the barrow, a lone female, closely wrapped, approached the barrow. She was the same woman whom the reddleman had seen. She was tall and straight in build, and gracefully lady like in her movements. She did not, at all, feel bothered of being alone at a lonely place at that time of the night.As she reached the top, the woman gave a deep sigh, apparently at something in her mind and looked through a hand held telescope in the direction of The Quiet Woman inn. She then looked at an hour-glass placed next to her and noticed that all the sand had slipped through. She started following a foot track and headed towards another ‘bonfire which had attracted the attention of the group of men and women on Rain barrow. When she reached the bonfire which was still burning, she met a little .boy who had stayed back to feed the fire. At that moment, her grandfather called her indoors but Eustacia replied that she would stay out there for a little while more and asked him to go to bed. She then asked the boy to keep feeding the fire a little longer and wait for the sound of a frog jumping into the pond in order to inform her about it. She also promised him six pence in return. The boy unwilling got to his work, inwardly wanting to go home.
Wildeve Answered the Signals
Eustacia was impatiently waiting for something for too long. A little later, the boy called out to her saying that he had heard the sound of a frog jumping and Eustacia at once gave him the coin. Now, the figure of a man seen near the pond and The man was Wildeve. He asked her why she had lit the bonfire to signal him to come; Eustacia replied that she had lighted the bonfire to commemorate the fifth of November (Guy Fawke's Day) just as everyone else was doing. But Wildeve argued that he believed, she had lit that particular bonfire to draw his attention. Then Eustacia admitted that she indeed had that purpose in her mind and she had understood that Wildeve was still faithful to her as he did not get married to Thomasin that morning. She also said that she still loved him and forgave him for coming back to her leaving the other girl.
A CHAPTER-WISE CRITICAL SUMMARY
The bonfire if Wildeve would have married the other girl that morning as it would have been insulting to her pride. She believed that Wildeve still loved her more than Thomasin. Widleve said that he had given up his career of engineering to become an innkeeper for her sake. Eustacia then vainly said that she would not come to Rainbarrow to meet him anymore even if he called her or tried to tempt her. Wildeve said that, she had said much the same thing before but by nature cannot stick to her words. Eustacia then expressed that her feelings were being hurt by his Words and she called him a chameleon who was showing his worst colour at that moment. She claimed that she had lit the bonfire`to call him only to enjoy the power she had over him. The mysterious character of Wildeve is unfolded in this chapter. We now know, why his attitude towards Thomasin Was so casual and indifferent. There is another woman, Eustacia in his life who is a superficial and vain type of, girl. She is proud of her beauty and Wildeve cannot resist the temptation to come and meet her though he had decided to marry Thomasin.
Chapter VII : Queen of Night
Her Charm und Beauty Eustacia Vye's passions and instincts were unlike those of a model woman. She was full limbed and heavy but as soft as a cloud when touched. Her light hair fell over her fore-head like night descending upon the evening in the west: Her eyes were pagan full of nocturnal mysteries. She had a lovely mouth and exquisitely lined lips. Her beauty was memorable as roses, rubies and tropical midnights; she moved like the tid.es of the sea; her voice recalled a musical instrument. Re-arranged of herself in a dim light, would give her a figure of one of the higher female deities.Her Loneliness, and Her Desire for Love. The only tonic, that could drive away her loneliness in Egdon was her desire to be loved to madness. More than any particular lover, what she desired most was passionate love. Her desire went on deepening with her loneliness. She was more interested in the intensity of love than loyalty of love. She was a social non-conformist with a forwardness of mind. She never valued holidays or pleasure or rest she would always do her domestic duties on Sundays, frequently ‘sing a psalm on Saturday nights and read the Bible on a week-day.Eustacia`s Discontentment Eustacia failed to appreciate the subtle beauties of Egdon Heath. Egdon had an environment which would make a contented woman a poet, a suffering woman a devotee, a pious woman a psalmist and even a giddy woman thoughtful, but it made this rebellious woman sad and gloomy. She idealised Wildeve only to fill up the idle hours of her life and because there was no one better than him. Sometimes her pride made her wish to be free of him but that could happen only with the appearance of a better man. She often suffered from depressions and took long but slow walks to cheer herself up: She rarely schemed, but when she did, her plans showed a strategy that could hardly be called 'womanish'.Mrs. Yeobright shrewdly decided to use Diggory's offer of marriage for her own purpose. Arriving at Wildeve's inn, she told him that another man had asked for her permission to, marry Thomasin, Widleve then replied that if Thonaasin was willing to marry the other man, he would not come in their way.
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