Far From the Madding Crowd was the first book I was forced to study at secondary school that I actually enjoyed. It made me look a whole bunch of words up in the dictionary and start to understand why/how people could study books. In essence, it was the start of my journey to studying English lit and really developing my love of books. So I decided to re-read it this year to see if I still enjoyed it. *Spoiler alert* of course I did.
This book really reminds me of why I love Victorian fiction. I read this at the start of lockdown in the UK and the gentle pace of the book and soothing descriptions of nature were really what I needed for a time fraught with anxiety.
Far From the Madding Crowd tells the story of Bathsheba, a woman who falls in love to some extent with three different men in the book. The book largely follows Gabriel Oak, the most reliable and most loving of the three, in his pursuit of her. Gabriel proposes to Bathsheba when he owns his own farm, and shortly after being turned down, loses the farm and has to apply to work at the one she recently inherited. It's a blow to his pride, but is nowhere near as hard as watching her enter a relationship with another man.
William Boldwood is a neighbouring land owner, and the most appropriate match for Bathsheba, but when she catches the eye of ruthless Sergeant Troy, all thoughts of 'worthy' matches are thrown to the wind.
The book really is filled with beautiful description of the English countryside, and I love how shocking some elements of it were for their time. It's a great insight into moral tales in this era, with Gabriel Oak, like the tree, providing foundations and an aura of sturdiness, and the potential outcomes of extra-marital sex being taken to extremes.
I gave this 5 stars and would recommend it if you're trying o get more into Victorian literature, or are a big fan of Dickens/the Brontes.
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