Far From the Madding Crowd Gender Quotes

When tasked with the responsibility of riding a horse to the nearby mill, Bathsheba decides to ride her horse like a man, with one leg dangling down each side of the animal. This would have been a scandalous thing to do during Hardy's time, since riding this way was seen as a twisted way for women to get sexual pleasure. Hey, don't look at us. That's what people thought back then. We're not the perverts—the pervert is Victorian society as a whole.

When she realizes that Gabriel Oak has watched her doing some of her strange, manly riding tricks, Bathsheba becomes flushed with embarrassment. It's not so much that someone saw her, but the fact that someone was watching without her knowing it that bothers her so much. And can we blame her?

Gabriel has seen Bathsheba do some pretty manly things. That's why he tries to reassure himself of her femininity when he takes her hand and compliments how smooth its skin is, especially for the wintertime.

In other words, men will sometimes like proud and independent women, but only insofar as they think of these women as something they can capture and possess. You know, like creepy big game hunters only like lions if the lion is stuffed and displayed in their den.

When he brings her a new lamb as a gift, Gabriel hopes that Bathsheba will show herself to be like other girls and to enjoy raising a cute little lamb. Once again, he seems intent on convincing himself that Bathsheba can be made to act like a normal girl. After all, she's so beautiful that he can't stand the idea of her being a tomboy. Again: why are these two things mutually exclusive? We like playing rugby and raising bunnies.

When she catches her bailiff Pennyways stealing some of her crops, Bathsheba wastes no time in firing him taking his place herself. In doing so, she becomes the first woman in the area to ever manage her own farm. Get it, girl.

When Bathsheba announces that she'll run her own farm, there is a commotion among the workmen. Some think it's funny; while others are angry at the thought of having to answer to a woman in the daily work.

The workmen can't go complaining about Bathsheba right in front of her. But once they go to the pub after the workday is over, they tend to vent all of their frustration at having to work for a woman. They compare her to a dog, which is a polite Victorian-era way of calling her a b*tch.

Throughout this book, Hardy's narrator likes to make some nice sweeping generalizations about women. In this case, he mentions the hypocrisy of the fact that women always seem to complain about men being promiscuous and non-committing. But then they go and turn away the first dude who actually shows them loyalty and commitment. Hmm. Was Thomas Hardy a Nice Guy?

Bathsheba is angry at God for making her a woman. Which we get: being in woman in Victorian England sounds messed up. She also gives the humblebrag to end all humblebrags by saying "Oh, dang. I wish I wasn't so pretty." Awk-ward.