Gabriel Oak is the hero of 'Far From the Madding Crowd' but Bathsheba Everdene is a more ordinary person who is a mixture of good and bad. Gabriel Oak does not change very much through the novel, he is always noble and reliable, but Bathsheba changes as the experiences in her life force her to learn and change.

When we first meet Bathsheba, the gatekeeper tells Gabriel that this beautiful, black-haired woman has one fault: "vanity", but she is obviously attractive enough for Gabriel to ask for her hand in marriage, and she is independent and honest enough to tell him she would never marry him because she does not love him. At this time Bathsheba has no fortune of her own while Gabriel has earned enough to purchase a farm with 200 sheep. His prospects were good, and it would have been easy for Bathsheba to accept him at a time when women were expected to take second place to men.

Bathsheba admits she would like to have the things that went with marriage - a piano, pets, her own carriage, her name in the marriage announcements - but she objects to losing her freedom. She seems to have a strong character and

Soon after we see another example of Bathsheba Everdene's strong character and independence when she takes over running the farm herself. At the market she does well enough to be accepted by other bailiffs as having the ability to carry out her new responsibilities. She and Gabriel make an excellent team, and it is sad that a silly action of Bathsheba's leads to tragedy.

Bathsheba must be very attractive because she manages to catch the attention William Boldwood, the wealthy owner of a nearby farm. Boldwood does not seem able to fall in love until Bathsheba, almost as a joke, send him a valentine with a seal that says "Marry Me." She does not do this with any bad intentions, but it attracts Boldwood to her, and this attraction turns into an obsession. Maybe Thomas Hardy is showing us how little thoughtless actions can lead to very serious consequences. It is not long before Boldwood is pursuing Bathsheba and proposing marriage.

Then she falls in love with Sergeant Frank Troy. She doesn't just fall in love, she falls head over heels for him, and her common sense flies out of the window. She is flattered by his attentions, she is dazzled by this romantic soldier who brings beauty and danger into her life. As the story-teller writes, "When a strong woman recklessly throws away her strength, she is worse than a weak woman who has never had strength to throw away." Bathsheba Everdene is as infatuated with Sergeant Troy as William Boldwood is infatuated with Bathsheba Everdene.

Bathsheba marries Frank Troy. It is a stupid thing to do, but not a wicked thing. She marries him at a time when she is "grieved and troubled" and when she is in a state between "jealousy and distraction". She is practically black-mailed into the marriage by Troy who tells her "his constancy could not be counted on" unless she marri

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1227
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)