The Withered Arm The story, by Thomas Hardy

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The Withered Arm

The story, by Thomas Hardy is set in a small village where no one minds their own business. It was 1885 when this story was set the story is called The Withered Arm. Thomas Hardy was born on 1840 and died at 1928. He was a special he gained, and has kept fame both as a poet and as an author. His blend of nostalgic longing for a simpler past, together with a “modern” philosophical view of world, gives us distinct insights into the human condition and his sheer long life in terms of creative output is amazing in it self. He managed in all more than 70 years of writing novels, short stories, poems and the occasional theatrical exploit. He was published for more than 50 of those years.

A man called Farmer Lodge and he was going out with a woman called Rhoda. He wouldn’t marry her because she was a lower class than him. She had working lady hand so it made her hand very unattractive to Farmer Lodge. Farmer Lodge is now married to Gertrude. Farmer Lodge left Rhoda after she got pregnant with his child. Gertrude loved Farmer Lodge and Rhoda was jealous of Gertrude. Gertrude was a kind woman. Gertrude saw Rhoda’s son without shoes so she brought him some new ones.

One night Rhoda has a dream about Gertrude in the dream she saw Gertrude with a massive cut on her arm. Gertrude wakes up that morning with a massive cut on her arm just like in Rhoda’s dream. Gertrude goes round to Rhoda’s house to give her the shoes. Then Rhoda saw Gertrude’s arm but she didn’t tell anyone because she felt guilty because at first she thought Gertrude wasn’t a nice person but now she new that she was a nice person so she didn’t tell anyone.

Rhoda went with Gertrude to the conjurer Trendles house and the conjuror said that the scare on her arm could not be cured but he did say he can show her, her enemy was Rhoda. So Rhoda waits outside while the conjuror show her, her enemy  who was Rhoda when Gertrude came out she began to act funny towards Rhoda.

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Seven years passed and Gertrude feels that Farmer Lodge doesn’t love her anymore. They are both very unhappy. So Gertrude tries one more thing to get rid of the scare on Gertrude arm. She has to touch her arm against the neck of someone who has just been hanged. She didn’t tell her husband because she knew he will disapprove of it.

She went down to the prison where the person was about to get hanged. When the man bring the hanged persons body to Gertrude as he promised. Then he slowly put Gertrude’s hand on the hanged body.

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