Feeling Sympathy for Gertrude and Rhoda in The Withered Arm, by Thomas Hardy

Feeling Sympathy for Gertrude and Rhoda in The Withered Arm, by Thomas Hardy

The Withered arm is typical of Hardy's novellas, as it is a tragedy.

It involves two main characters, Rhoda and Gertrude. Rhoda and

Gertrude both have their own different problems that the must face.

Rhoda and Gertrude become friends after they first meet. Rhoda had an

illegitimate child to farmer lodge who marries Gertrude. Before Rhoda

and Gertrude meet Rhoda does not know what Gertrude is like so is

bitter about the idea of her marrying farmer lodge who hardy hints

Rhoda is still in love with.

Rhoda is described to be old before her age and works as a milkmaid.

She receives no help in the upbringing of the boy she had with farmer

lodge so she works hard to care for him. The other milkmaids talk

about her and they start to talk about the subject of farmer lodges

new wife. This part makes you feel some sympathy for Rhoda as she is

being talked about when she is still there. Because of the times Rhoda

was not at all respected for bringing up a child on her own but

instead she was treated as a social outcast. No one seemed to blame

farmer Lodge for what had happened. The other milkmaids will think

nothing of talking about her business when she is there. This makes

you feel sympathy for Rhoda because in this day and age the farther

would be forced to help at least financially with the upbringing of

his son and Rhoda would be respected for her hard work in bringing up

a child on her own.

Rhoda is curious about the new wife and sends her son of to "check her

out", as it would be. She wants to know what his new wife is like.

Hardy gives the impression that Rhoda is jealous of the new wife or a

least angry that he is taking a new...

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...ge says that he is

away on holiday. You feel sorry at her desperation as she is only

doing this so farmer lodge will like her for her physical beauty but

she does not seem to mind.

The body that she touches happens to be Rhoda's son and farmer Lodge

is with her. You feel sorry for both the women equally as much at the

end of the story but for different reasons. Rhoda has had her whole

life taken away from her however little it was and Gertrude has now

died as a result of trying to improve her physical beauty.

In conclusion I think that you can not feel more sympathy towards

either woman as they are both in the same boat and it is because of

each other that they had so much grief and hardship. If they had

nether met or had anything to do with each other then they would not

have been like they were. It was all a matter of situation and

circumstances.