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MonkeyNotes-Far From the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy
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Farmer Boldwood
Farmer Boldwood is a very interesting character and bears himself
as a perfect gentleman. He is respected and well liked by the men
in the village. The women also notice him, for he is handsome and
dignified, caring about his appearance. Boldwood is also
essentially generous, helping the likes of Fanny Robin. Like Oak,
he too keeps Troy's involvement with Fanny a secret from
Bathsheba. By nature he is a simple and unassuming. Perhaps that
is why, at age forty, he is still a bachelor. Basically shy, he shows
no outward interest in women. When he pays Bathsheba no
attention, she decides to toy with his emotions and sends him a
valentine. As a result, he falls in love with her.
Boldwood's love for Bathsheba is expressed by an overwhelming
desire to possess her. He is so obsessed with this single desire that
he allows his farm to deteriorate. He buys presents for her to give
sometime in the future, when they are married, as he is sure they
will be. He repeatedly asks for her hand in marriage, and cannot
accept that he cannot have her. When she marries Troy, he is
driven to the point of insanity. But when Troy deserts her, his hope
is restored, although is obsession and his madness continue. When
Troy reappears on the scene at Boldwood's party and destroys his
plans for a future with Bathsheba, he is pushed to the brink. When
he says Troy treat his true love roughly, he snaps. He takes a gun
and shoots Troy. The villagers, who pity this pathetic romantic,
stop him from shooting himself. He leaves the party and honorably
turns himself in to the authorities in Casterbridge. He is truly a
tragic figure.
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