Term Paper on "Fatalism of Thomas Hardy as Shown"

Term Paper 18 pages (4907 words) Sources: 1+

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Fatalism of Thomas Hardy as Shown in His Novel Return of the Native

The theme and concept of fatalism expressed in the Return of the Native is an important and pervasive element in all of Thomas Hardy's Works. Fatalism refers to the belief that human character and action is determined not by our will or desire, or ideas, but by something larger over which we have little control. "His deliberate theory is a sheer fatalism -- that human character and action are the inevitable result of laws of heredity and environment over which man has no control." (Fletcher R.H.)

In other words, environment, character and history as well as blind will influence the lives of men and women in Hardy's works. This is the seemingly pessimistic view that forms the background to many of his woks and is essentially the central background and theme in Return of the Native.

In order to understand the novels in terms the actions and motivations of the central characters it is very important to understand the underlying philosophy or worldview that informs Hardy's literary works. Hardy did not conceive of the world and universe as benevolent, nor did he believe that society offered the individual any real hope of happiness and success.

He did not believe that life in society could be lived successfully. In his view - and he never tired of repeating it- there was something fundamentally awry in the scheme of things; he even came to think of human emotion itself as a cruel flaw and mistake in creation. Thus the attempt to find consistent moral attitude in his novels is already wasted,

Furbank, P.N. p.13)

The above quotation points out two very important aspects that affect an interpretation of Hardy's work. The first is that "...there was something awry in the scheme of things." This means that Hardy felt that there was something wrong in the way that our world was constituted. This leads to his view that we are not in charge of out fate and that we are shaped, without our consent, by various contexts and factors beyond our control. The second aspect gleaned from the above quotation is that there little use in searching for moral or personal motivation in the novels. People often do things with no clear rational reason, but these actions usually have far reaching and profound effects on their lives and the lives of others, as will be seen from the following analysis.

Another important aspect to consider is the effect on Thomas hardy of the time and social environment in which he lived. This can be seen to have had a profound effect on his philosophy of fatalism. His pessimistic view of life where the outcome always seems to be tragic or unhappy was influenced by the intellectual and scientific movements of the age. When Hardy moved to London he, began to spend whole evenings reading such authors as Darwin, Shopenhauer and Mill, who strongly affected him and undermined his religious faith. This sense of fatalistic determinism also reflected scientific studies of the time on human heredity, which seemed to deprive man of all responsibility for his action. This led Hardy to work out of the idea of a kind of predestination, quite often predestination to failure, according to which all men fulfill their destiny without finding any help either in society, which oppresses and destroys them, or in love, which often leads to unhappiness.

Later Victorians:Thomas Hardy&Naturalism)

These and other influences of the time such as the deep questioning of the existential meaning of life may have had a profound effect on his fatalistic perception of existence. Many modern critics are of the opinion they the Return of the Native is one of his most successful works. One of the reasons for its present popularity may be that it deals with problems that are particularly appropriate to contemporary thought: such as the search for meaning in life and the existential crisis in society. The essence of Return of the Native is not just about a story of tragedy and failed relationships, rather the book questions the very meaning of existence and the possibly of happiness in the modern world. It is essentially a novel about human freedom.

Hardy was in conflict with the society and the accepted norms of the time. "The novel is at once his revolt against asceticism, Christian propriety, optimism, and the traditional expectations of love and marriage..."

Jekel 89) Furthermore, what is meant by Hardy's fatalism can be discerned in the following extract from the author's writings.

In an article on the Profitable Reading of Fiction (in the Forum, March 1888), Hardy writes of the "inevitableness of character and environment in working out destiny": and the influence of environment is again strongly stressed by one of his classifications of the novels

(Grimsditch 28)

Environment is particularly important in the Return of the Native. It is more than just the setting and the mood of the novel, but is a central "character" in its own right and is essential to a deeper understanding of the actions of the l characters. In the novel under discussion, environment refers to nature and Edgon Heath.

Anther central theme is the conflict between man and nature.

This novel shows the dominance of nature over man, stressing man's impermanence against the infinity of nature. This belief, also known as fatalism, is emphasized throughout the novel. This view is shared by the character of Clym Yeobright... But is contrasted by Eustacia Vye,

Hardy's Fatalistic View of Life)

All of the above aspects add to the understanding of the novel as an integrated artistic whole.

2. Characters

2.1. The Heath

While the Heath may not be a character in the conventional sense of the word, critics have pointed out that it plays a deeply significant role in the novel. The famous writer and critic, D.H, Lawrence, in his Study of Thomas Hardy, stated that the Heath is in fact the central focus of the book and is in reality more important than the human characters.

What is the real stuff in the book? It is the Heath. It is the primitive, primal earth, where the instinctive life heaves up. There, in the deep, rude stirrings of the instincts, there was the reality that worked the tragedy. Close to the body of things, there can be heard the stir that makes us and destroys us.

Lawrence, DH p 172.)

The above lines are important in understanding the issue of fatalism in the novel. According to Lawrence's interpretation, nature, as symbolized by the Heath, is a basic, pagan instinctive force which is the source of all life and humanity. Hardy was also aware of this as can be seen in his careful exposition of the Heath at the beginning of the book. The Heath is nature or fate and humanity is unknowingly part of this his greater undercurrent of life. The central point that Lawrence makes is that without insight and knowledge of this source of life, human aspirations and hopes are essentially doomed to failure and have little or no real significance in comparison to the larger scheme of things.

Lawrence continues his exposition on the Heath and clearly indicates how the Heath relates to the central characters in the novel.

The Heath heaved with raw instinct. Egdon, whose dark soil was strong and crude and organic as the body of a beast. Out of the body of this crude earth are born Eustacia, Wildeve, Mistress Yeobright, Clym, and all the others. They are a year's accidental crop. What matters if some are drowned or dead and others preaching or married: what matter, any more than the withering heath, the reddening berries, the seedy furze and the dead fern of one autumn of Egdon? The Heath persists. Its body is strong and Fecund, it will bear many more crops than this. Here is the somber, latent power that will go on producing, no matter what happens to the product. (ibid)

In other words, the heath is the source of the lives of the central characters and much more enduring and permanent than they are. While Lawrence sees knowledge of this source of life as the redeeming factor in his novels, there is no such redemption in Hardy; and Return of the Native, like his other works, is essentially fatalistic and immersed in pessimism.

Lawrence is not the only critic who is of the opinion that the Heath is central to the novel and to an understanding of the work. Grimsditch also sees the Heath in terms of personification.

The Return of the Native, by Thomas Hardy, begins with personification of a majestic heath, the setting for this novel: "The face of the heath by its mere complexion added half an hour to evening; it could... retard the dawn, sadden noon, anticipate the frowning of storms... And intensify the opacity of a moonless midnight to a cause of shaking and dread."

Grimsditch 55)

Critics have noted that… READ MORE

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