Bathsheba takes on the farming duties because she doesn’t want yo fail and is constantly trying to impress herself. Whereas Fanny seems to be desperate just to survive. She was “picking up a living of seampstering”. By saying “picking up” I feel that Hardy is trying to express her need to simply get by. Also in the time that this book was written, seampstering was known to be a tough trade, which was very poorly paid, and not a line of work to take up unless it was the last resort. Fanny’s actions contrast Bathsheba’s will, not to survive, but to impress. I don’t think Bathsheba would have allowed herself to be in such a position to have to take up seampstering, as she had too much pride and many more resources socially.
Fanny Robin fits into the 1870’s conventions a great deal better than Bathsheba does. I think that this can be related to their childhood and parentage. Convention in the 1870’s was very much about women being seen and not heard. It was frowned upon for a woman to converse with strange men. Bathsheba broke this rule as soon as she met sergeant Troy, as she spoke to him and interacted instead of quickly leaving after she was untangled. (QUOTE. Bathsheba meeting Troy and flirting). A woman should always have used a soft voice. Fanny Robin was portrayed as a very quiet woman, and many of the local townsfolk described her as (QUOTE. Her quietness). Bathsheba, however, was very vocal and was able to take charge. For instance, when she took over duties as the bailiff. A woman was never expected to ask anything of a man in the 1870’s. Neither Fanny nor Bathsheba fitted this rule totally. In some respects Fanny did, she was very grateful to Gabriel for his help, and wrote a letter of thanks to him (QUOTE. Fanny’s letter). In other situations Fanny was not as respectable, for instance, she pushed Troy until he finally set a date for their wedding, instead of waiting for him to make his choice. Bathsheba also defies convention when she doesn’t thank Gabriel for paying her toll. This shows that she expects Gabriel to do it anyway, and considers herself higher than him. A woman was not to get onto a carriage or a horse. (QUOTE. Of Bathsheba riding horse alone). When Bathsheba rides alone and is, unbeknown to her, seen by Gabriel, she defies all convention. Even if she was alone, a normal Victorian woman would never take the same actions as Bathsheba.
Fanny fits almost all convention, and is submissive to men. She would have been a model Victorian woman. This is in contrast to Bathsheba who simply had too much character to be a Victorian woman. For instance she travelled all the way to Bath, on her own, to find Troy. Which in the 1870’s would have been unheard of.
Bathsheba’s parents were not typical of the Victorian era. The father himself was (QUOTE. To describe Bathsheba’s father.) He had to pretend that he was single so that he didn’t have commit adultery to his wife. From this open and modern family, Bathsheba couldn’t have been expected to be typical and average. From her parentage she is bold and probably taught not to “fit in”. Fanny Robin, however, was looked after financially by Boldwood. She was very much closed as a child. The simple fact that she didn’t have a strong upbringing implies that she may not have a strong life, or character.
The two women’s views on marriage are possibly one of the strongest difference’s between their characters. Bathsheba is quoted to have said “I hate to be thought men’s property in that way” when Gabriel asks her to marry him. This reflects her individuality and a slight insecurity about being tied down with another man. Perhaps because she doesn’t know what is round the next corner, and doesn’t want to have to be with her husband forever. Fanny Robin was very keen to marry Troy and when she finally had her date set she wrote a letter to Gabriel Oak saying “I am happy to say I am going to be married...” This simple sentence shows the little girl inside Fanny. (That is shown many times during the book). This also shows another contrast between Bathsheba and Fanny. Bathsheba appears to be very much more mature than Fanny. For instance she doesn’t like to cry (QUOTE. Bathsheba holding back tears).
The rustic characters in Far from the Madding crowd act as narrators throughout the book. They are the comic relief for the audience, and contrast the other characters by having a “common” view on people like Bathsheba and her family. The other characters such as Liddy, Bathsheba’s maid, see her as “almighty womanish”. She gains a lot of respect from the audience through the rustic characters comments. As they all have strong opinions of her, be they good or bad. More than just Gabriel notice that she is a “very vain feymell”. Billy Smallbury, one of the rustic’s, notices this. Although there are negative views of her, many other characters see her strengths. Laban Tall commented that “...she’s a brave girl who’ll never tell a lie however much the truth may harm her...”
A good way of showing Bathsheba and Fanny’s differences is by comparing them by another characters views. Boldwood describes Fanny as a “silly girl - a silly girl” and Bathsheba as a “wretched woman - deluded woman”. This again shows they weakness of Fanny, as silly is a very immature word, and wretched - deluded are both words that show great thought. As if Boldwood put a lot of effort into describing Bathsheba.
Hardy had very modern views about women, and liked to treat them as strong and independent in his books. This reflected his attitude to them. He liked to show his ideas through the way he portrayed them, e.g.. When Bathsheba was described riding the horse through the woods. Hardy describes Bathsheba as a “handsome”, “careless”, “well-favoured and comely”, “woman in full bloom and vigour”. He has a very definite role for her, and sees her as a pure yet bold well spoken woman. There is a very particular quote which describes her perfectly and that is “An Elizabeth in brain and a Mary Stuart in spirit”. This shows how strong and loved she is by Hardy. But I think that he did not have the same view of Fanny. He describes her “like a mere shade upon the earth”. As if she just has nothing to show for herself. She is a very sad character and I think Hardy wrote her to be an exact opposite of Bathsheba. For instance, they both love Troy, but both have separate outcomes because of their own actions. Troy is an outsider to the village. He represents rootless modernity. He is an outsider with inappropriate values and ideas. He has no relationship with the farming community, as he shows when the storm almost destroys the harvest. He simply gets the farm hands drunk and is oblivious to the vulnerability of the ricks. Troy’s behaviour disrupts the ordered pattern of rural life and yet both Bathsheba and Fanny are either infatuation, be it Bathsheba, or in awe of, in Fanny’s case. I believe that Troy is the link between the two women. He brings out the weakness in Bathsheba and the strength in Fanny, they both act out of context. In contrast to Oak, he is careless with the women’s feelings and enjoys the pain he inflicts on the characters, such as Boldwood.
Both women act out of context when faced with the prospect of loss or desertion. Bathsheba, “bewildered too by the prospect of having to rely on her own resources again” and Fanny who is very secretive " I don't want people to know anything about me”. This response is probably expected of Fanny, but I think that it shows a great deal of strength to not have to rely on someone else to carry your burden.
Hardy’s use of “pathetic fallacy” not only shows the characters mood’s but it also helps compare the two. E.g.. We first meet Bathsheba in a big green valley, which represents security, broad openness, and fresh thoughts and feelings. It shows that she is bright and cheerful. We last see Bathsheba when she is married to Oak. Again she is happy, but with a foggy future. When Fanny is first introduced the sky is dull and dark, and she is placed in a graveyard. This automatically gives some kind of hints that maybe she is not healthy and death is not far away. The audience’s suspicions are then confirmed when Gabriel Oak touches her wrist and deduces that she is suffering from consumption. The bright life of Bathsheba’s entrance gives a good comparison to Fanny’s dull and dingy future.
As Fanny walks to the workhouse Hardy describes her as being “in the depths of a moonless and starless night”. As in, there are no lights in the sky or in her future, above her. It shows that everything she is thinking is dark, and she has no glimmer of a chance.
Jealousy is often hinted when Bathsheba talks of Fanny. Even her subconscious thoughts think of her. For instance, when she runs away and sleeps rough under a tree Bathsheba doesn’t sleep “between the beautiful yellowing ferns with their feathery arms”. Which I think describes Fanny, as she has yellow hair and is very frail and beautiful. But she sleeps in a “species of swamp, dotted with fungi... the general aspect of the swamp was malignant... rotting leaves... oozing gills”. This kind of describes her “oozing” feelings and jealousy and disgust towards Fanny and herself.
The editor of the Cornhill magazine in 1874 was opposed to having the issue of Fanny’s illegitimate child put into Far from the Madding crowd. Thomas Hardy wrote his book in segments and each week a chapter of the book would be published. The readers of the Cornhill magazine would have generally been conservative middle class people. The Editor was anxious about the readers reaction to Fanny’s pregnancy because illegitimacy was such a stigma in the 1870’s. Illegitimate mothers were often sectioned and middle class people didn’t like the idea of it. They found it disgraceful. The simple fact that Fanny was ill and dying would have been thought to have been enough. But I think Hardy wanted to show how desperate and low fanny had become. He also wanted to show that having an illegitimate child was not the “end of the world”.
In conclusion, Fanny and Bathsheba are both very individual, and are Hardy’s way of explaining his thoughts about women in his era. Bathsheba was the upper class woman who is thought to be strong and bold, and turns out to be a simple insecure girl. Fanny was viewed as the lower class girl who is unfortunate enough to become ill, and have many horrible things happen to her, but develops into a strong willed character.
