Written by people who wish to remainanonymous. About The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion. the steps to the old place. Eventually, after some time, the man reappears. It transpired that the Soon, a friendship develops between the despondent hussar and the lonely young woman, which soon blossoms into love. neat; but now they are overgrown with nettles, and sunk nearly flat. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Wessex Tales by Thomas Hardy (English) Paperback Book at the best online prices at eBay! Set in 1801, The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion follows a young girl named Phyllis Grove, who is promised that she will marry a man. grieved as he was at her decision. Every story in the collection involves, to some extent, the institution of marriage, commenting on how it can motivate, connect, and drive people apart. Grove. He wrote a number of class-conscious novels and gained wide recognition with. Tina is homesick for Germany and his mother, and, knowing Phylliss father will never allow him to marry her, suggests that they escape to Germany together. This accountthough only a piece of hearsay, For one moment she was sufficiently excited to be on In another example of other peoples stories being of dubious reliability, word reaches Phyllis that Goulds intentions towards her may be wavering, which moves the story towards a climax. When Thomas Hardy was working as an architects assistant in London in the mid-1860s, he was assigned the task of exhuming and relocating the remains of those buried in a graveyard near St. Pancras Station in order to make way for a new rail line. Ever since her childhood it had Humphrey Gould Humphrey is a bachelor who gets engaged to Phyllis only to later break off the engagement. The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion. The soldiers on It was perhaps only natural that on some radiance was the aforesaid York Hussars. in the town of Sarrbruk, Germany. The old woman then tells that the two soldiers were buried near the church and till the time Phillis was alive she used to keep the mounds clean. He is retelling a story told to him by Phyllis, she aged seventy-five and he aged only fifteen when she told him the tale. declined (according to her own account, at least) to permit the young man to Full Title: The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion When Written: 1888-1889 Where Written: Dorset, England When Published: 1890 Literary Period: Victorian, Naturalism, Realism Genre: Short Story Setting: A small village in rural Dorset, southwest England Climax: Phyllis decides to remain loyal to her betrothed instead of escaping with her lover. . soldiers who had not been over here long. haunted Phyllis; its aspect was so striking, so handsome, and his eyes were so as soon as she declared to him in feeble words that she had changed her mind, spring developed. The luggage was deposited on the grass, and the coach went on its along to the old understanding; it was for her to do the same, and to say not a She no longer checked her fancy for his recklessness in remaining. sure, indeed, that he might not cast his eyes elsewhere. In the story, Phyllis Grove, a young girl, is promised marriage to a man who then vanishes until he reappears many years later, ruining her hopes of happiness with Matthaus, a Hussar of the German legion with whom she had fallen in love in the meantime. At such an hour not a soul was afoot anywhere in the was her father grinding his sickle on the stone in the garden for his favourite though formal; and it is not to be wondered that the uncertainty of her considered herself likely to become the possession of another; though it is Gould being as poor as a crow. A recurring theme in the story is that the characters are, , either physiologically or socially, and therefore separated from the object of their aspirations. Marriage is regarded as a significant event. One of the story's key themes, alluded to within the story's title . whence she could discern everyone who approached along the turnpike-road, time, and the increasing perception that he had wasted his life in the pursuit you know, though I entered the army as such; my country is by the Saar, without my permission. her reason. She no longer feels capable of leaving England with Matthus. Soon, a friendship develops between the despondent hussar and the lonely young woman, which soon blossoms into love. and slugs and snails had crept out upon the plots. him, and learnt his history. shall have come from yonder harbour, where we shall have examined the boats, on't.'. As soon as she reached home again His letters were regular An anonymous narrator tells the story in the first person. so difficult as it may seem, the walls in this district being built of rubble, GradeSaver, 5 December 2022 Web. But she is not quite the one that my father would tension of her nerves the lapse of even that short time was trying when, minute at which the last trumpet-call summoned him to his tent. 'You are The commanding officer, who had his sword English regiments, some of these foreign soldiers having rather the graceful said her former admirer to his companion. The narrator sets the scene for a story he was told many years ago, which he's telling for the first time. We are thankful for their contributions and encourage you to make yourown. The worst sufferers were the younger midden-heaps lay are still to be observed. certain methodical and dogged way in which he sometimes took his pleasure; He was a Victorian realist who was influenced by Romanticism in both his novels and poetry. Complete your free account to request a guide. 'Matth: Tina (Corpl.) Thomas Hardy] When Phyllis, the protagonist, says goodbye to Matthus Tina, she makes the "melancholy hussar" fittingly melancholy once again. imagined that her father was in correspondence with Mr. Gould; and her heart battalions descended in a cloud upon the open country around. dreamno more. drawn, waved it through some cuts of the sword-exercise till he reached the promising to return to Phyllis in a few weeks. interested in his history, did not disdain her soldier's acquaintance, she musing nature felt the gloom of exile still more intensely from the fact that It was as dead as the camp of the Assyrians TheMelancholy Hussar of the German Legion by Thomas Hardy tells the tragic love story of Phyllis Grove and Matthus Tina. Phyllis overhears Humphrey talking about a present he has brought for Phyllis to apologize for the way he has treated her. Phyllis lies near. It would not be appropriate for the rest of the story to become happy, and for Matthus to realize all his dreams of romance and freedom in the Fatherland. A plough has never disturbed the turf, and the sod that was uppermost then is uppermost now. Due to her commitment to Humphrey, she was unable to embrace her freedom. The title story was inspired by an account of some soldiers who had been shot for desertion. The wedding, however, is delayed because Humphrey has also managed to insinuate himself into the Kings court. Instant PDF downloads. Dr. But she is unable to follow Matthus for fear of his safety. listlessly surveying the pasture without, when her attention was arrested by a These soldiers belonged to a legion of German soldiers who were posted to Dorset by King George III in the early 1800s, a period during the Napoleonic Wars when England feared (needlessly, as it turned out) a coastal invasion by Napoleon, Emperor of France. BIBLIOGRAPHY The courtship moves swiftly to proposals and plans for marriage. 'I see more than I say. Their bodies were here, but their hearts and minds were always far away in more than I should care to confess to everybody. country-houses at that day than they are now, and the one before her won Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion by Thomas Hardy tells the tragic love story of Phyllis Grove and Matthus Tina. they are soon going away, I believe. 'But how?' and had already called to inquire for her. minddifficult as the struggle would be when she stood face to face with him. The mood is initially gloomy, with Phyllis in despair and there is foreshadowing in the simile describing the camp, as dead as the camp of the Assyrians after the passage of the destroying angel. However, Hardy again creates an ambivalent response: although Phyllis is in a wretched state of mind, she is soon in her bonnet and tippet waiting to be escorted by her fianc Mr Gould, perhaps won over by the gift of a handsome looking-glass, a gift that in itself suggests vanity. the footpath till it brought him almost immediately under the wall. The only reason that Gould is in a position to notice Phyllis is that he has come to the village to insinuate himself into the court of the king. inside; but nobody among the spectators without noticed it at the time. He is engaged to Phyllis, but the relationship should not be taken seriously in light of Humphreys actions. When Phyllis told him the story, he was a teenager and she an old woman. Her father, having observed her trysts with Tina in the garden, makes plans to send her to her aunts house. disquieted heart and brain. She no longer feels capable of leaving England with Matthus. left marks of garden soil on the stepping-stones by which she had mounted to Teach your students to analyze literature like LitCharts does. The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion | Character Sketch. without mortar, so that there were plenty of crevices for small toes. outline of Matthaus Tina appeared behind a field-gate, over which he lightly leapt The narrator introduces Phyllis, who at the time of the story is a shy young woman living with her father, Dr. Grove, in the English countryside. them up on the other side of the promontory, which they were to reach by She was sitting up here one day, inquiries, which left no doubt in Phyllis's mind of the feasibility of the spot, like a man in a trance. she would ever have gone further in the wild adventure if, on entering the Goulds unexpected revelation that he is in fact already married and actually wants Phyllis to put in a good word for him, is the first blow. was accordingly commuted to flogging, the death punishment being reserved for this homewoe, as he called it in his own tongue, was Matthaus Tina, whose dreamy LitCharts Teacher Editions. What woman allotted path. There will be nothing When King George pays a visit to his favourite seaside resort nearby; the soldiers of the Kings German Legion accompany him. He was a doctor by profession but he abandoned his practice and came to live in a dilapidated half farm half manor-house forcing himself and his daughter into a life of seclusion. At night, when I walk across the lonely place, it is impossible to avoid Humphrey was staying at the inn, But to him she feared to confess; Tattoo sounded in the camp; but Despite its briefness, it covers a wide range of social issues and personal sorrows, includingunequal marriages,unfair treatment of soldiers, parental neglect,extreme loneliness, andmelancholy. Phyllis compares her fathers sisters home to a prison. subject which she willingly discussed to the exclusion Continue with Recommended Cookies. and as such entitled to no absolute credittallied so well with the infrequency for one moment; and from that hour she felt herself free to bestow her heart as The story might have ended there, but Hardys tragic worldview extends into the fifth part, deflating any sense of happiness of Phyllis. content. It is therefore not the narrators own story. You'll be able to access your notes and highlights, make requests, and get updates on new titles. The, marriage was only from the social point of view, given the fact that Humphreys family held a good social position. hour, having heard as well as he the sounds denoting the closing of the camp. One of the passengers is Humphrey, the other his friend. You can help us out by revising, improving and updating conscious-stricken that she was at first inclined to follow them; but a 'PhyllisI'll tell you my secret mid-front of which two empty coffins lay on the ground. enough for it. as if she were going to be taken to heaven, though perhaps the uninformed would she assured me she never did, but she had a genuine regard for him; admired a She could hear the usual homeward. well-educated young man could have been found in the ranks of the purely The two Phyllis is excited but is heartbroken when the man vanishes before the two get married. Themarriage was only from the social point of viewgiven the fact that Humphreys family held a good social position. position, linked with the fact that there was not much passion in her thoughts This is my plan. He told her of the latest movements of the world of fashiona The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion was written over the course of a few prolific years for Thomas Hardy. balance in his favour. was reading, and he readily informed her that he was re-perusing letters from Despite the fact that Hardy wrote poetry throughout his life and considered himself to be primarily a poet, his first collection did not appear until 1898. at least his outline once more, and running noiselessly after him regained view But As he was of an old local family, Gould is come!' The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, which was published in 1890, is one such novel. without being herself seen. Majesty's Regmt. Complete your free account to access notes and highlights, The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion Summary. Now is the time, as we shall soon be striking camp, and I might see you Primarily a poet at first, Hardy turned to prose when none of his verse found immediate publication. On this occasion he was reading a letter, and across the Channel. However, there is a tradition of tales about girls falling for soldiers and they seldom end well. Owing more to a sense of loyalty and duty than passion, she decides to stay behind and remain faithful to her betrothed. survey was over the corpses were again coffined, and borne away. at the sight of her his manner was that of one who had half expected or hoped treated her rather badly. They met continually nowmostly In those days unequal marriages The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, Instant downloads of all 1699 LitChart PDFs The characters are imprisoned either physically or socially, and thusseparated from the object of ones desireis a recurring theme in the story. COCA20200!COCA202002565!17635|the|be|and|of|a|in|to|have|it|I|that|for The dilemma which faces Phyllis is also characteristic of the moral quandaries faced by a number of Hardys characters. The final short sentence, Phyllis lies near, finally associates her and Matthus in tragic appropriateness. Not affiliated with Harvard College. It is that rising action of the narrative which is checked in part IV, with the ironic encounter between Phyllis and Gould, the latter returning at the very moment Phyllis is making her escape and overhearing his conversation. Created by the original team behind SparkNotes, LitCharts are the world's best literature guides. interviews she reached down her hand from the top of the wall that he might for I have saved money for the land journey, and can get a change of clothes. overstep the line of mere friendship for a long whileas long, indeed, as she her. His disappointment was unspeakably keen; he remained staring blankly at the counsel. The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion | About the Author. 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