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Part 1: Chapter II
Summary
Synopsis: Jude's great-aunt tells the story of this orphan boy - Jude engaged in Farmer Troutham's field to scare away birds - dismissed and thrashed for kindness towards the birds - aunt disappointed and Jude depressed - enquiries about Christminster - his curiosity about the city.
Jude, an orphan, brought up by his great aunt. After the departure of Mr. Phillotson some village women gathered at Jude's great-aunt's place just for gossip. This maiden aunt of Jude, Miss Drusilla Fawley, was running a bakery in her own house at Marygreen. When Jude entered the house with the buckets, a lady asked her aunt who the boy was. Miss. Fawley told the ladies present there, in a rather unsympathetic tone, that he was her great-nephew and that she had to bring this orphan boy from South Wessex to live with her after the death of his father and mother. She added that just to keep this poor useless boy out of mischief she has allowed him to work in the corn-fields of Farmer Troutham to scare away the birds for a very meagre wage. She did not like it when the ladies opined that the boy might be some help to her in her lonely life. Then she sarcastically remarked that it would have been better for Jude to accompany his teacher to Christminster as he was crazy for books just like Sue, his cousin. Then she mentioned how difficult life was for the parents of Sue after their marriage. And she strongly advised the boy not to marry at all. "Tis not for the Fawleys to take that step any more".
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| Jude The Obscure: Part 1, Chapter 2 |
Jude goes to Troutham's field-dismissed for his kindness to the crows. Jude felt ill-at-ease when he found that he was the focus of general attention. He quietly left the room, took his breakfast and left for Troutham's corn-field to scare away the birds. There he became busy in his job. He began to use his clacker or rattle briskly every few seconds. The frightened rooks would immediately leave off pecking and fly away on their leisurely wings. But very soon they would wheel back and come down to feed again. Jude disliked this job of depriving the birds of their food and sustenance. He remembered his teacher's parting advice-be kind to animals and birds'. Ultimately his sympathy for the birds became so strong that he could not sound the clacker to scare away the birds. "They seemed, like himself, to be living in a world which did not want them." At length he loudly invited the birds saying: "Eat, then, my dear little birdies, and make a good meal!" He threw away the clacker. Suddenly he got a smart blow on his buttocks with the same clacker. And the blows came from none but Farmer Troutham. He had seen everything and heard everything, uttered by Jude. He gave him a sound thrashing, totally ignoring all his explanations. He dismissed him for his absolute neglect of duty immediately after paying him six pence for the day's work asking him not to show his face again on his fields.
Jude's aunt shocked and disappointed. To avoid the village people Jude went homeward by a roundabout way. On his way back he was very careful not to tread on the coupled earth-worms lying on the damp ground. He was a soft-hearted boy who could not himself bear to hurt anything. Jude felt awfully downcast thinking that he might be a great burden to his great aunt for good. When Jude told her why and how he was dismissed by Troutham, she was shocked and frankly told him that nothing could be expected of him if he could not perform such a simple job. She added sarcastically that it would have been better if he had accompanied his schoolmaster to Christminster. On Jude's asking how far that beautiful city was and if he could go there to meet Mr. Phillotson, his aunt replied in the negative and in a discouraging tone.
Jude's mental depressionhis curiosity about Christminster. Jude felt much mentally depressed and lay down idly on his back on a heap of litter. He did not want to grow up as it brought responsibilities. "That mercy towards one set of creatures was cruelty towards another sickened his sense of harmony". But then as is usual with children, soon he shook off his worries and in the afternoon he went into the village. There he asked a man about the exact location of Christminster. The man pointed north-eastward. To go in that direction, he would have to cross Farmer Troutham's field. But he did it and moved up the track till it joined the highway that proceeded towards Christminster.
Critical Analysis
Jude's mind and character. This chapter throws considerable light on the working of Jude's mind and his character His sympathetic response to the birds' thwarted desires and the way he talked to them and invited the "poor little dears' to dinner reveals the kind and sentimental nature of Jude, as his effort to avoid crushing and killing the earthworms under his feet shows his kind and soft heart. And when Jude finds a resemblance between his own unwanted life and the puny and sorry lives of those birds we can see the child having the bitter experiences of life somewhat before his time.
Hardy and his pessimistic philosophy. While commenting on the soft and sentimental traits of Jude's character and its sad consequences, Hardy has amply revealed his own pessimistic philosophy. It is a very painful experience for Jude after getting his thrashing from the farmer and he realised that "what was good for God's birds was bad for God's gardener,..." Jude did not want to grow up as it brought responsibilities. He very painfully learnt that 'mercy towards one set of creatures was cruelty towards another..... And then Hardy's sardonic comment - "This weakness of character, as it may be called, suggested that he was the sort of man who was born to ache a good deal before the fall of the curtain upon his unnecessary life should signify that all was well with him again" - truly reveals his pessimistic philosophy of life. There is a good deal of pathos in this chapter. The extremely unhappy consequences of Jude's kind and sympathetic attitude towards the birds is really pitiable and his pathetic predicament arouses a deep sense of sympathy in our soul.