The Son's Veto by Thomas Hardy

Compare the way that Thomas hardy writes about the effects of

marriage on his characters’ behaviour and lives in a selection of his

short stories.

Introduction

Thomas Hardy was born in higher bockhampton Dorset in 1840. His first

career move was an architect in London he then went on to be a short

story novelist. He married twice his first wife Emma and second

Florence.He him self being much like many of the characters being born

and bread a country boy to grow up to be part of a working class

family. Hardy died in 1928in Dorchester.

Thomas Hardy got his inspiration for many of his stories by local

gossip or from a story currently in the news papers at that particular

time. Hardy would set stories much earlier and use different names and

places so he wouldn’t upset anyone.

“The Son’s Veto” Was based on Hardy himself and stemmed back from his

own experience with this mother. She works for a vicar at the time of

class distinction and snobbery.

In “The Son’s Veto” the marriage of sophy and twycott takes place this

is convenient for sophy.

“Well – do you want to marry? Not much. But it would be a home for me

and we have heard that one of us will have to leave.”

Sophy marries twycott because of what he is offering her she needs

someone to support and provide for her. Sophy does not love him but

his superior social position can allow her to live well.

Sophy and twycott are from different classes and at that particular

time that was shamed upon. So this took a really affect on the two of

them and the marriage.

“Mr Twycott knew perfectly well that he had committed social suicide

by this step, despite Sophy’s spotless character.”

Twycott was fully aware of what would happen after the marriag...

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...n his offer down

and he ends up marrying Milly.

Summary

The story that appealed to me the most was “Tony Kytes, The

Arch-Deceiver” This was because it was funny to see just how he work

and thought he could get away with asking all these different women to

marry him and that he just ended up marrying Milly because the other

two women would have married him after what he done to them.

The Character I had most sympathy for was Gertrude because it was

unfair that she was unaware of Rhoda and Lodges past. And after she

was disfigured by the marks on her arm Lodge didn’t want anything more

to do with her.

In all of these short stories I think Thomas Hardy was trying to

convey the real meaning of marriage and how seriously it was taken to

marry out of class in those days. Also how you would put your social

respect at threat by marring the wrong person.