Far From the Madding Crowd Chapter 20 Summary

Perplexity: Grinding the Shears: A Quarrel

  • Now we're with Bathsheba, who's sitting around and worrying about this whole thing she's started with Boldwood. She admits to herself that she likes him, but she doesn't like-like him.
  • The day after Boldwood's proposal, Bathsheba visits Gabriel Oak at the bottom of her garden. She asks him whether the men are saying anything about her hanging out with Boldwood. He admits that people are talking about her and Boldwood marrying, and then holds her hands to show her how to hold shears to a grindstone.
  • She tells Oak that she wants him to go around and set the record straight; she won't be marrying Boldwood.
  • Oak says he has something to say about the way Bathsheba has led Boldwood on, but she says she doesn't want to hear it.
  • When he persists, though, she snaps and orders him to leave her farm and never come back. So he does.