The incompatibility
between Clym and Eustacia is that between a plodding idealist and a fiery sensualist.
Do you agree?
OR
“Frustrated
idealism & unhappy love are the major themes of The Return of the Native.”
Discuss.
Hardy’s The Return of the
Native is a novel of frustrated idealism and unhappy
love mainly for incompatible relationship between two major characters – Clym
Yeobright and Eustacia Vye. Both of them are the real natives of the land,
Egdon Heath. However, both of them are poles apart in character. The former is
a plodding idealist, whereas the later is a fiery sensualist. When the story
begins, we are not introduced with Clym who has been in Paris at that time but
returns soon to the heath and his return to the heath alters the destinies of
several persons including himself. Eustacia is, as described by Hardy, as
“Queen of Night” whose eyes are pagan, are too fancy that a whole winter does
not contain darkness enough to form its shadow. She is a woman of nineteen,
tall, straight and graceful.
Both
Clym and Eustacia are creatures of impulse and live more by passion than by
reason. Eustacia always longs for passionate love and her great desire is “to
be loved to madness”. On the other hand, Clym is not less passionate than her.
As a result, as soon as they see to each other, they fall in love.
