Return of the Native
by Thomas Hardy
From The Publisher:
This fine novel sets in opposition two of Thomas Hardy's most unforgettable creations: his heroine, the sensuous, free-spirited Eustacia Vye, and the solemn, majestic stretch of upland in Dorsetshire he called Egdon Heath. The famous opening reveals the haunting power of that dark, forbidding moon where proud Eustacia fervently awaits a clandestine meeting with her lover, Damon Wildeve. But Eustacia's dreams of escape are not to be realized--neither Wildeve nor the retuming native Clym Yeobright can bring her salvation. Injured by forces beyond their control, Hardy's characters struggle vainly in the net of destiny. In the end, only the face of the lonely heath remains untouched in this masterpiece of tragic passion, a tale that perfectly epitomizes the author's own unique and melancholy genius.
 

Helpful links and study aids:
 

http://pages.ripco.com:8080/~mws/hardy.html

This site contains biographical information on Hardy as well as links to text and other interesting information about Hardy.
 
 

http://www.gettysburg.edu/english/hardy/

The "Thomas Hardy's World" web site is the product of three seminars jointly taught at three liberal arts college. Prof. Suzanne Johnson Flynn, at Gettysburg College, and Prof. Patricia O'Hara, at Franklin & Marshall College, came together to construct a syllabus which both would follow for their Thomas Hardy Seminars in the fall 1996 semester. Later, Prof. Ashton Nichols, at Dickinson College, joined the collaboration by creating a seminar which would focus on the works of both Hardy and William Wordsworth. All three seminars were linked in a number of ways. Students in all seminars were encouraged to join a Thomas Hardy listserv, an electronic bulletin board which served as a forum for students' ideas, questions, research interests or problems, etc.

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