Far from the Madding Crowd Lesson Plan

When Boldwood is pressuring Bathsheba to marry him at the Christmas party, she says, "It is difficult for a woman to define her feelings in language which is chiefly made by men to express theirs." What is the significance of this line when considering Bathsheba's difficulties throughout the novel?

Throughout the novel, Bathsheba is treated like an object. She is the object of gossip and speculation by villagers and farm laborers, and the object of desire and possession by Troy and Boldwood. Though Bathsheba is intelligent, strong, and independent, she is limited by her context. In this quote, she shows that in addition to structures, customs, and traditions, the very...