The Return of the Native (Oxford World's Classics) [Paperback]

Thomas Hardy (Author), Nancy Barrineau (Author), Margaret R. Higonnet (Author), Simon Gatrell (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 26, 2009

'To be loved to madness - such was her great desire'

Eustacia Vye criss-crosses the wild Egdon Heath, eager to experience life to the full in her quest for 'music, poetry, passion, war'. She marries Clym Yeobright, native of the heath, but his idealism frustrates her romantic ambitions and her discontent draws others into a tangled web of deceit and unhappiness.

Early readers responded to Hardy's 'insatiably observant' descriptions of the heath, a setting that for D. H. Lawrence provided the 'real stuff of tragedy'. For modern readers, the tension between the mythic setting of the heath and the modernity of the characters challenges our freedom to shape the world as we wish; like Eustacia, we may not always be able to live our dreams.

This edition has a critically established text based on the manuscript and first edition, and without the later changes that substantially altered Hardy's original intentions.

About the Series: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the broadest spectrum of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, voluminous notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Thomas Hardy (1840-1928) is one of England's greatest novelists. Most of his work is set in his native Dorset, on the south coast of England.

Product Details

• Paperback: 488 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; Reissue edition (July 26, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0199537046
• ISBN-13: 978-0199537044
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #482,613 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #19 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Literature & Fiction > Authors, A-Z > ( H ) > Hardy, Thomas
  • #37 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Literature & Fiction > World Literature > British > 19th Century

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Year and a Day on Egdon Heath, September 26, 2011

By 

Daniel Murphy "Dan Murphy" (Redmond, OR USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Return of the Native (Oxford World's Classics) (Paperback)

There was a time, before iPods, Walkmans, TV, radio, record players, in which workers (usually women) that were assigned to long hours of menial labor would assign one amongst them to read a book to the rest. The Return of the Native, Thomas Hardy's sixth novel, would be a terrific choice for such a reading group. Few in the 21st century have the leisure, or the inclination, to delve into a tale in which many pages might be given to the description of a natural scene, or to the intricate development of the personalities of the main characters of this book. But if there were a modern reader that either had, or made, time to read this book at the deliberate and careful pace that is required to experience its depth and richness, that reader would be richly rewarded. As was I.

Thomas Hardy, better known for Tess of the D'Urbervilles, was one of the most influential of the English authors of the 1800's. Both D.H. Lawrence and Virginia Woolf pay him homage and cite him as a source of their inspiration. His stories can be explored on two levels, both levels very accessible to the moderately experienced reader, neither level involving a journey into the deep complexities of books such as Pinchon's Gravity's Rainbow or James Joyce's Ulysses.

The first level of The Return of the Native: it's simply a wonderful tale. For the price of a tiny bit of patience, as Hardy's narrative begins to unfold the reader receives a rich story involving integrity, duplicity, humor, passion, selfishness and selflessness, nobility and narcissism, as well as the consequences of impetuous action and the rewards of patient persistence. As a well told story it stands on its own and stands proudly, with or without the embellishment of scholarly opinion or critical review.

The second level: Hardy infuses the story with his philosophy of the relationship between nature and mankind, his criticisms of the tragic consequences of societally ordained values (Victorian values colliding with human desires and capabilities), and beautiful symbolism. For those who feel that plots are not the core of a novel but merely scaffoldings upon which to hang literary/philosophical schools of thought and layers of symbolism, The Return of the Native serves well as a cerebral playground.

Taken at the first level, The Return of the Native is an absorbing tale complete with unpredictable twists of plot, human souls whose fates are determined by letters that arrive moments too late, and bouts of comic relief.

At the second level, The Return of the Native is rich in philosophy, anthropology, even theology.

Take both levels together, and you have what is deservedly called a classic. The word classic makes many cringe. No need to recoil from The Return of the Native: this story is fascinating and rewarding for any who are patient enough to let its rich flavors and constructions emerge at a pace reflective of an era gone by.