The Return of the Native
The Return of the Native by Thomas Hardy is a significant work published by Random House Publishing Group on February 13, 2001, as part of the Modern Library edition. This novel is set against the backdrop of Egdon Heath, a wild and haunting moor in Wessex, where the lives of farmers, inn-keepers, and lovers intertwine. The narrative follows Clym Yeobright, who returns from Paris, and explores themes of love, alienation, and the unpredictable nature of fate.
Readers will encounter a rich tapestry of characters, including Clym’s cousin Thomasin, her fiancé Damon Wildeve, and the determined Eustacia Vye. The story delves into the complexities of their relationships and the impact of chance on their lives. Hardy’s exploration of the human condition is underscored by the ever-changing landscape of the heath, which serves as a powerful symbol throughout the narrative. This edition spans 448 pages and is presented in English, inviting readers to engage with Hardy’s profound insights into life and nature.
Official synopsis Publisher
One of Thomas Hardy’s most powerful works, The Return of the Native centers famously on Egdon Heath, the wild, haunted Wessex moor that D. H. Lawrence called “the real stuff of tragedy.” The heath’s changing face mirrors the fortunes of the farmers, inn-keepers, sons, mothers, and lovers who populate the novel. The “native” is Clym Yeobright, who comes home from a cosmopolitan life in Paris. He; his cousin Thomasin; her fiancé, Damon Wildeve; and the willful Eustacia Vye are the protagonists in a tale of doomed love, passion, alienation, and melancholy as Hardy brilliantly explores that theme so familiar throughout his fiction: the diabolical role of chance in determining the course of a life.
As Alexander Theroux asserts in his Introduction, Hardy was “committed to the deep expression of [nature’s] ironic chaos and strange apathy, even hostility, toward man.”
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