| The novels of Thomas Hardy are a pleasure to read for all and sundry. His novels are varied in their settings, textures and endings. Its really difficult for a common reader to find out a pattern in his novels. But if studied carefully, one can find that his central characters undergo a distinct transformation: most of his pivotal characters have a journey in the course of the novel from egotism to altruism. By selecting Far from the madding crowd The mayor of caster bridge and Tess of the D'urberVilles, it will be possible to compare works spanning from early to late in his career as a novelist. The settings of these three novels are also varied : rural, urban and with The mayor of casterbridge, somewhere between both the rural and urban.Finally,the ending of these three novels are also interesting.Far from the Madding crowd, though Hardy subtitles it a tragi -comedy, has a happy union at the end while Tess of the D'Urbervilles, clearly ends unhappily for the central character, The mayor of castridge again can be looked upon in both ways. It will be entertaining as to find out the effect of the Victorian theorists and their works (namely Herbert Spencer, Charles Darwin and Lesly stephen) on Hardy in general and upon these characters in particular. |