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The Return of the Native

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About This Book

The narrative follows the lives of several inhabitants of a brooding heath whose moods shape events as much as the characters themselves. A man who returns to his native place seeks a simple vocation while a passionate, restless woman craves escape; a charming but unreliable suitor complicates their relationships. Misunderstandings, social pressures and the heath's isolating power lead to betrayals, accidents and tragic consequences. Through interwoven episodes the work examines yearning against duty, the pull of place, and how community customs and landscape influence choices and fate.

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Title: The Return of the Native

Author: Thomas Hardy

Release date: March 8, 2006 [eBook #122]
Most recently updated: October 29, 2024

Language: English

Credits: John Hamm and David Widger

*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE RETURN OF THE NATIVE ***

The Return of the Native

by Thomas Hardy


Contents

PREFACE
BOOK FIRST—THE THREE WOMEN
I. A Face on Which Time Makes but Little Impression
II. Humanity Appears upon the Scene, Hand in Hand with Trouble
III. The Custom of the Country
IV. The Halt on the Turnpike Road
V. Perplexity among Honest People
VI. The Figure against the Sky
VII. Queen of Night
VIII. Those Who Are Found Where There Is Said to Be Nobody
IX. Love Leads a Shrewd Man into Strategy
X. A Desperate Attempt at Persuasion
XI. The Dishonesty of an Honest Woman

BOOK SECOND—THE ARRIVAL
I. Tidings of the Comer
II. The People at Blooms-End Make Ready
III. How a Little Sound Produced a Great Dream
IV. Eustacia Is Led on to an Adventure
V. Through the Moonlight
VI. The Two Stand Face to Face
VII. A Coalition between Beauty and Oddness
VIII. Firmness Is Discovered in a Gentle Heart

BOOK THIRD—THE FASCINATION
I. “My Mind to Me a Kingdom Is”
II. The New Course Causes Disappointment
III. The First Act in a Timeworn Drama
IV. An Hour of Bliss and Many Hours of Sadness
V. Sharp Words Are Spoken, and a Crisis Ensues
VI. Yeobright Goes, and the Breach Is Complete
VII. The Morning and the Evening of a Day
VIII. A New Force Disturbs the Current

BOOK FOURTH—THE CLOSED DOOR
I. The Rencounter by the Pool
II. He Is Set upon by Adversities but He Sings a Song
III. She Goes Out to Battle against Depression
IV. Rough Coercion Is Employed
V. The Journey across the Heath
VI. A Conjuncture, and Its Result upon the Pedestrian
VII. The Tragic Meeting of Two Old Friends
VIII. Eustacia Hears of Good Fortune, and Beholds Evil

BOOK FIFTH—THE DISCOVERY
I. “Wherefore Is Light Given to Him That Is in Misery”
II. A Lurid Light Breaks in upon a Darkened Understanding
III. Eustacia Dresses Herself on a Black Morning
IV. The Ministrations of a Half-forgotten One
V. An Old Move Inadvertently Repeated
VI. Thomasin Argues with Her Cousin, and He Writes a Letter
VII. The Night of the Sixth of November
VIII. Rain, Darkness, and Anxious Wanderers
IX. Sights and Sounds Draw the Wanderers Together

BOOK SIXTH—AFTERCOURSES
I. The Inevitable Movement Onward
II. Thomasin Walks in a Green Place by the Roman Road
III. The Serious Discourse of Clym with His Cousin
IV. Cheerfulness Again Asserts Itself at Blooms-End, and Clym Finds His Vocation