Far From The Madding Crowd

What types of love are portrayed by Hardy through the various relationships in "Far From the Madding Crowd"

Love plays a big role in the book "Far From the Madding Crowd". The main love given to is Bathsheba, but other characters do feel love as well, for example Troy feeling love towards Fanny Robin. All these types of love though are very different from each other. One is "true" love while two others are obsession and physical attraction.

Bathsheba is a very pretty but vain woman who owns a farm. She lives in a small cottage with Liddy.

Liddy is like a sister to Bathsheba and love is portrayed in sister love as well. Most of the time Bathsheba asks her for advice and Liddy, being much older and wiser than her does guide her in the right direction usually. Liddy covers Bathsheba when she gets into trouble or when she doesn't like to see someone. One good example is when Oak came at first to her house to ask her for her hand. Liddy somehow gave the impression that he had no chance. Liddy also loves Bathseba. She is protective towards her and feels responsible for her and this is also a form of love that she shows towards her mistress.

Gabriel Oak, a farmer who spent most of his time on his farm but later lost it because of an accident first fell in love with Bathsheba. He was a very direct and honest person and wasn't very good at flattering people. By impulse he went straight to Bathsheba to ask her to marry him. She declined but they became good friends.

Gabriel was very honest here and expressed his feelings towards her. His impulse though did not really get him very far at this point.

Another character who fell in love with Bathsheba was Boldwood. Boldwood at first did not intend to fall in love with her. He got the wrong message, and took a Valentine letter which was meant as a joke from Bathsheba for real. Boldwood was a very wealthy man who could afford a family, but the only problem was that he became too obsessed with her. Slowly but steadily Boldwood came closer to Bathsheba. Even though Bathsheba didn't love Boldwood she was ready to marry him because she was ready to face to consequences by doing something like this, and so that he doesn't get too upset after noticing that he was getting too obsessed with her.

Frank Troy was a soldier who was about to marry Fanny Robin, but did not due to her carelessness by mixing up the Churches. Later in the story he meets Bathsheba. Both of them are attracted to each other. Troy due to being very good at flattering woman and being well built has no problem in convincing Bathsheba to marry him. Troy was more physically and sexually attracted to Bathsheba than he was to her character.

One day Troy met Fanny again. There one can see that he still loves Fanny and really cares for her. He offered her all the money he had with him at that moment. After he found out that she died, he really showed his feelings towards her by saying to Bathsheba that she is nothing compared to Fanny. Here he was really moved by her and would rather have Fanny dead than Bathsheba.

After Troy dies (by being shot by Boldwood) and Boldwood goes to jail, Gabriel shows his true love again for Bathsheba . I think Bathsheba sees his love and honesty more better now after having two bad experiences and sees how good he really is and marries him after all.

Altogether the love Oak showed was the most honest and at the end turned out to be the best. Hardy portrayed four different kinds of love towards Bathsheba. Liddy who was a sister like person who covered her up when she got into trouble and who advised her. Boldwood who was mislead by a joke into obsession, and she was about to marry him because she took the full responsibility and had to accept the consequences until Troy came. Troy was more of a person to love for his features than for his heart. But at the end his true love was still Fanny for whom he cared for and would rather have her dead than Bathsheba . Oak being a good friend at first, got to know her better and this time wasn't impulsive. He waited and at the right moment he showed his real love towards he and they married.