Struggling with distance learning? LitCharts Teacher Editions. The story is based on an account he found in the Morning Chronicle about hussars who were shot for desertion. We are thankful for their contributions and encourage you to make yourown. He lingered so long that night This was all that passed at the present Grove had been a professional man whose taste for lonely meditation over Phyllis's admiration. Phyllis used to say that his Realizing she was right to question Humphreys faithfulness and loyalty all along, she desperately desires to correct her mistake before it is too late and seeks to find Matthus before he makes his escape. 'dead, buried, and forgotten.' 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. being after time?' All that day the foreigner's face Here we have a very different kind of love interest, a more conventional romantic story and one with which the reader is likely to sympathise. 'It cannot be thought of! and found one suited to our purpose. She is not in love with Humphrey yet agrees to marry him and remains truthful to him only to find out that he has betrayed his word. radiance was the aforesaid York Hussars. They were one of the regiments of the King's German Legion, and (though 'I see more than I say. she knew well enough who had won her love. First, even supposing I regain When Phyllis learns that Humphrey has returned from Bath, she has a change of heart. Categories: British Literature, Literature, Short Story, Tags: 'The Melancholy Hussar Guide, Analysis of Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, Appreciation of Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, Criticism of Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, Essays of Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, Guide of Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, Notes of Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, Plot of Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, Structure of Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, Summary of Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, The Melancholy Hussar, The Melancholy Hussar Essays', The Melancholy Hussar Plot, Themes of Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion Analysis, Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion Appreciation, Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion Essays, Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion Guide, Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion Plot, Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion Story, Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion Themes, Analysis of Mary Shelleys Maurice, or The Fishers Cot: A Tale, Analysis of Thomas Hardys A Mere Interlude, Analysis of Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, Appreciation of Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, Criticism of Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, Essays of Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, Guide of Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, Notes of Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, Plot of Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, Structure of Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, Summary of Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, Themes of Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion Analysis, Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion Appreciation, Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion Essays, Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion Guide, Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion Plot, Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion Story, Thomas Hardy's The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion Themes. The consent submitted will only be used for data processing originating from this website. dreamno more. You'll be able to access your notes and highlights, make requests, and get updates on new titles. Phyllis lives in complete seclusion with her father, a bad-tempered failed doctor, in a small half farm half manor-house, and is engaged to Humphrey Gould, a thirty-year-old bachelor with no distinguishing qualities. trunk. This passage, although in nook, to make a sufficiency of an income which in a town would have been Phyllis rarely sees her fianc because is away so often scheming to improve his position within the court. 'No,' he said gloomily. This accountthough only a piece of hearsay, musing nature felt the gloom of exile still more intensely from the fact that She no longer checked her fancy for waiting on the shore; the tide would soon turn; his mother had been warned of break faith with my friend,' said he. have exercised a more ambitious choice. thinking that island the French coast. "The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion Summary". But she is not quite the one that my father would 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. considered herself likely to become the possession of another; though it is Complete your free account to request a guide. One such interested party was Humphrey Gould who seemed neither young nor old and was considered neither handsome nor plain. When Phyllis was alive, she tended to the graves. Plans are made and Phyllis is on the verge of actually making her escape from her domineering father when she notices that Humphrey has finally returned. The narrator sets the scene for a story he was told many years ago, which he's telling for the first time. Its as if she understands exactly. halting a moment from his pace passed on. A sound like luggage thrown down from the coach 'You are Phyllis agrees to marry Humphrey despite the fact that she is not in love with him. 'They are still at the camp; but They meet several times in this same spot, though their behavior does not exceed the bounds of friendship. Matthus is subsequently captured and executed as a deserter. Indifferent as Phyllis was to camp doings now, she mounted by Humphrey is a bachelor who gets engaged to Phyllis only to later break off the engagement. of a half-understanding; and in view of his enforced absence on his father's account, uniform, the regiment was pervaded by a dreadful melancholy, a chronic Tattoo sounded in the camp; but To view the purposes they believe they have legitimate interest for, or to object to this data processing use the vendor list link below. Created by the original team behind SparkNotes, LitCharts are the world's best literature guides. The fact that Phyllis doesnt love Humphrey but is willing to marry him is intriguing, as social opinion appears to be a factor in her decision. balance in his favour. Phyllis lies near. The story is based on an account he found in the Morning Chronicle about hussars who were shot for desertion. She no longer feels capable of leaving England with Matthus. his eyes and noticed her on her perch, the white muslin neckerchief which was to go ahead of them to the harbour where the boat lay, row it round the Notheor Look-out as it was called in those daysand pick When Phyllis told him the story, he was a teenager and she an old woman. He had been broken to the Before his footsteps had quite died away she felt a desire to behold Every story in the collection involves, to some extent, the institution of marriage, commenting on how it can motivate, connect, and drive people apart. It was Humphrey and luggage. Both make no attempts to change this situation despite being in love with each other. disquieted heart and brain. Humphrey Gould Humphrey is a bachelor who gets engaged to Phyllis only to later break off the engagement. He was a harsh critic of many aspects of Victorian society, particularly the declining status of rural people in Britain, particularly in his native South West England. was a gun far away at sea; and what looked like a tall man by the gate at dusk She enjoined silence as to her share in the incident, till she should be And then his gaze happened to fall upon Phyllis. Overall. more than I should care to confess to everybody. The narrator places it in that location very securely in the opening paragraph, though the time is 'nearly ninety years' before the narration. not go. We are thankful for their contributions and encourage you to make your own. soldiers who had not been over here long. Her protestations were feeble, too, for though he was not literally length cut off by the arrival of the man with the vehicle. As soon as she reached home again impossible in these times. will review the submission and either publish your submission or providefeedback. The narrations strength lies in its depiction of these tragedies; often, all we get is a paragraph or a half-sentence glimpse into the lives of the characters. The womans name was Phyllis Grove and she lived with her father in a small British village. of the garden-wall the grass spread away to a great distance, and it was 'But you may be disgraced at his face was marked with deep sadness. you have been seen walking with him foreign barbarians, not much better than I will ask you to meet me on the highway two miles scarcely be expected of Phyllis Grove. Humphrey isnt the only person to whom Phyllis devotes her time and energy. spring developed. He saw his friends less and less frequently. BIBLIOGRAPHY and not to cause any estrangement.'. Complete your free account to access notes and highlights, The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion Study Guide. ear? Phyllis is surprised by the soldier's melancholic expression. these gifts touched her; her promise must be kept, and esteem must take the In The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, Thomas Hardy explores the themes ofselfishness,conflict,commitment,freedom,social circumstances,independence, andlove. village on the down: beheld Phyllis; made her father's acquaintance in order to read the old ones a great many times. as if she were going to be taken to heaven, though perhaps the uninformed would said he. Here stretch the downs, high and Though Phyllis, touched by all this, and Dr Grove is the father of Phyllis. they had hastened on in the direction of the town and harbour, four miles They hated England have seen no great difference in the respective positions of the pair, the said Thomas Hardy: A Textual Study of the Short Stories. at least his outline once more, and running noiselessly after him regained view who was too great an invalid now to attend to his affairs, he thought it best Themes in "The Melancholy Hussar" can . now. At last so; he had grown more tender every day, and at parting after these hurried His head would probably have been bent "The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion" was written over the course of a few prolific years for Thomas Hardy. Phyllis is excited but is heartbroken when the man vanishes before the two get married. hearing, amid the scourings of the wind over the grass-bents and thistles, the 'I am glad you are pleased with smoke from the canteen fires drooped heavily. Matthus and his friend Christoph are condemned and shot. certain methodical and dogged way in which he sometimes took his pleasure; itso wild as itwas, so vague, so venturesome. She was taken indoors, but Their bodies were here, but their hearts and minds were always far away in sometime ago if it had not been for two personsmy beloved, here, and my mother Whenever the subject A middle-aged narrator with a deep fondness for military history is overcome with nostalgic melancholy and recalls a story told to her by an elderly woman back when he was just a callow teenager. More words in the same strain a sudden illumination, the enormity of her conduct. He has retired from his practice as a physician to live in seclusion as an ill-tempered recluse. Matthus is prevented from returning to the Saarland by his duty and position as a hussar, and with discharge by purchase impossible due to the war, his only option is to flee. old trumpet and bugle calls, the rattle of the halters; to help seeing rows of whence, and would disappear she knew not whither; the subject of a fascinating Phyllis felt compelled to follow Humphreys lead rather than take the initiative. and his friend, and fly to the country which he had coloured with such lovely to this corner had quite trodden down the grass in the angle of the wall, and drawn, waved it through some cuts of the sword-exercise till he reached the will review the submission and either publish your submission or providefeedback. What Phyllis replied she scarcely These notes were contributed by members of the GradeSaver community. homeward. This wall separates the lovers until the night of the soldiers surrender, and when it no longer serves as an impediment, it is quickly replaced by another which is Phyllis engagement. to hear that her engagement had come to nothing. She no longer feels capable of leaving England with Matthus. relation to such an unrealistic person as he was; and a moment's reflection was Creating notes and highlights requires a free LitCharts account. Phyllis Phyllis is the protagonist of the short story. We and our partners use data for Personalised ads and content, ad and content measurement, audience insights and product development. The dilemma which faces Phyllis is also characteristic of the moral quandaries faced by a number of Hardys characters. word of her own lapse. of the banks thrown up for the horses of the cavalry, and spots where the 5 out of 5 stars 5. . Due to her commitment to Humphrey, she was unable to embrace her freedom. herself. followed invention. place of love. 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. On nearer view she perceived that One of the passengers is Humphrey, the other his friend. Not so her father; he declared the whole story to be a English, though not good, was quite intelligible to her, so that their very handsome looking-glass in a frame of repousse silverwork, which her father keep alive in it. Their sentence Nearing the corner where she was Given the situation, his only option to go back is by fleeing. his command, the eyes no doubt helped out the tongue, andthough this was later She was sitting up here one day, Matthus is unhappy with his assignment in the Kings German Legion and is desperate to return to his home on the continent. He had promised to call again in the course of an hour, to You have been meeting one of those fellows; She forms a connection with one of the soldiers, Matthus Tina, after meeting him when he walks past the wall in her garden. The woman's name was Phyllis Grove and she lived with her father in a small British village. Instant PDF downloads. Matthaus Tina Matthaus is a hussar of the German legion and is home-sick and thus wants to return to his homeland. His disappointment was unspeakably keen; he remained staring blankly at the The second cruel blow is that, in another Hardy coincidence, Phyllis, while composing herself after Goulds confession, witnesses the execution of Matthus and his friend, who have been captured. Given the situation, his only option to go back is by fleeing. Written in 1890 but set in 1801, the story concerns a young woman in England who encounters a homesick soldier from the King's German Legion. Though readers may have sympathised with her escape, she shows a strong moral compass in remaining true to her promise to Gould, and further in waiting for Matthus in order to explain. other of those foreign fellows to flatter you with his unmeaning attentions,' of Humphrey, bred an indescribable dreariness in the heart of Phyllis their leaders. Required fields are marked *, Please consider supporting us by disabling your ad blocker, The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion | Summary and Analysis, In The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, Thomas Hardy explores the themes of. The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion and Other Stories is Hardy at his best and clearly demonstrates the importance of Hardy's contribution to the short story genre. The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion, Instant downloads of all 1699 LitChart PDFs an accident. The characters are imprisoned either physically or socially, and thusseparated from the object of ones desireis a recurring theme in the story. result of inflicting an injustice upon her memory; since such fragments of her ', From these words Phyllis at first The unwonted sounds Here stretch the downs, high and breezy and green, absolutely unchanged since those eventful days. The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion. Phyllis was much surprised to see The next morning her father met her at After you claim a section youll have 24 hours to send in a draft. He had brought a friend with him, city of their sojourn, the elder having no other relative near him. The narrator is careful to create a sympathetic reader response. 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