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The Return of the Native | Essays and Criticism

• The Timelessness of Egdon Heath

  In the following essay, the author examines how the timelessness of Egdon Heath actually helps support the plot’s reliance on chance.

• The Buried Giant of Egdon Heath: An Archeology of Folklore in The Return of the Native

  Fleishman is an American educator who has written extensively on the English novel. In the following excerpt, he analyzes the nature of Egdon Heath.

• On a Darkling Plain: The Art and Thought of Thomas Hardy

  In the following excerpt Webster suggests that according to Hardy, human effort, governed by natural law in a “Chance-guided universe,” goes “from one mistake to another,” and this gives the novel its pessimistic and bleak outlook.

• The Technique of Thomas Hardy

  In the following excerpt, Beach emphasizes the action and reaction (“suggestive of physics and dynamics”) of the feelings of Hardy’s characters, and the heath as representative of natural forces that are indifferent or antagonistic to human will.

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1. The Return of the Native: Introduction
2. The Return of the Native: Summary
3. The Return of the Native: Thomas Hardy Biography
4. The Return of the Native: Characters
5. The Return of the Native: Themes
6. The Return of the Native: Style
7. The Return of the Native: Historical Context
8. The Return of the Native: Critical Overview
9. The Return of the Native: Essays and Criticism
   1. The Timelessness of Egdon Heath
   2. The Buried Giant of Egdon Heath: An Archeology of Folklore in The Return of the Native
   3. On a Darkling Plain: The Art and Thought of Thomas Hardy
   4. The Technique of Thomas Hardy
10. The Return of the Native: Compare and Contrast
11. The Return of the Native: Topics for Further Study
12. The Return of the Native: Media Adaptations
13. The Return of the Native: What Do I Read Next?
14. The Return of the Native: Bibliography and Further Reading
15. The Return of the Native: Pictures
16. Copyright

Related Topics

1. Thomas Hardy

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