The Withered Arm.

Authors Avatar

The Withered Arm

The opening of the story, among the milkmaids, is much more innocent in terms of the tension and terror than the plot turns out to be although tension is shown here because of the mystery.  This is similar to many of Hardy’s other novels.  Terror is mainly brought out in the end when everyone passes away except Rhoda who may be the most evil character in the plot.  In most of Hardy’s short stories written he uses unexpected twists to create terror and tension.  This may link to the sort of life style in those times.

Rhoda wants her mysterious unnamed son to observe the new Mrs. Lodge as Farmer Lodge and Rhoda have had a certain relationship.  At this point of the short story the reader is bought to ask what type of relationship they had; we gradually learn that they have had a son together.  Gertrude Lodge is much prettier than Rhoda, therefore Rhoda wants to know what type of person she is and how she had been bought up.  Rhoda does this by sending her son for the second time to inspect her hands to see if they were rough, if so that would mean she would have done some work before.  If Gertrude did not work this would mean that she would have been raised from a rich family who employed people like Rhoda to do the work for them.  

                “You never told me what sort of hand she had,”

Tension is created by the fact that she is so inquisitive about Gertrude but she does not go and speak or see her personally.

Tension is again also created because Farmer Lodge totally ignores and takes “no notice” of his own son even when he could see his son was in pain by carrying a heavy load.  This shows the fact that he does not want Gertrude to know about the relationship.  It may also be because in the time when the short story was written there was a palpable set of classes.  If you were seen having a relationship with one of your social subordinates, especially a sexual relationship, you would be made an outcast from the particular social sector and your reputation would be ruined.  At the beginning of the short story Gertrude cares for the boy being charitable towards him, she gives the unnamed boy boots and “other useful articles.”  We presume that this is more than Farmer Lodge has ever done for the boy.  The irony brings out tension also because the reader is scared that Gertrude might find out that the boy is her husband’s son.

Join now!

The eerie setting of the story and where Rhoda lives primarily creates tension at first.  The environment is isolated and desolate.  We also see this as a similarity to the emerging character of Rhoda.  The home she lives in is made with mud, which is usually associated with dirty and poor things.  The surface had been washed into “channels and depressions,” the word depression had a double entendre; firstly being geographical term but secondly as gloominess.  This creates a hidden sense of tension.  The roof was also hatched; this looked “like a bone protruding through the skin.”  This simile ...

This is a preview of the whole essay