Far from the Madding Crowd is a novel by Thomas Hardy, first serialized in 1874. In the rural region of Wessex, the independent young farmer Bathsheba Everdene is loved by three very different men: the faithful shepherd Gabriel Oak, the serious farmer Boldwood and the dashing soldier Sergeant Troy. It was Hardy's first great success.
The story
Gabriel Oak proposes to Bathsheba and is refused. After losing his flock, he becomes a shepherd on the farm she has inherited. A playful valentine she sends to her neighbour Boldwood awakens in him a dangerous passion.
Bathsheba falls for the seductive Sergeant Troy and marries him, with disastrous consequences. Through all her trials, Gabriel remains her steady friend.
Wessex
This was the first novel in which Hardy used the name Wessex for his imaginary region, inspired by Dorset.
The novel describes sheep-shearing, harvest suppers, storms and markets with great precision, and gives a vivid picture of rural life.
The title
The title comes from Thomas Gray's Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard, which praises the quiet lives of country people far from worldly ambitions.
Hardy's novel shows, with some irony, that passion and drama are not absent from the countryside.
Anecdotes
The Cornhill
The novel was serialized anonymously in the Cornhill Magazine in 1874. Some readers guessed that the author was George Eliot.
A fire and a storm
Two famous scenes show Gabriel Oak's courage: he saves Bathsheba's ricks from a fire, and later covers them alone during a violent storm while the other men sleep.
Frequently asked questions
Who is Bathsheba Everdene?
An independent young woman who inherits a farm.
Who are her three suitors?
Gabriel Oak, William Boldwood and Sergeant Troy.
Where does the title come from?
From Thomas Gray's Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard.