THOMAS HARDY SHORT STORIES - PLOT SUMMARIES
The Withered Arm
• I: A Lorn Milkmaid milkmaids/men talk of Farmer
Lodge’s new wife coming. Rhoda tells her son to
find out what she looks like.
• II: The Young Wife son stares at Gertrude; reports
to mother; boy sent to church; reports back
• III: A Vision Rhoda dreams Gertrude attacks her;
Gertrude visits them & gives gifts; on a later visit
she shows her arm
• IV: A Suggestion G shows R her now shrivelled arm;
G asks R where Conjuror Trendle lives & they agree
to go together
• V: Conjuror Trendle G is told arm is due to ‘enemy’
& looks at egg white; R moves
• VI: A Second Attempt G visits Trendle – tells her to
touch a hanged man
• VII: A Ride G rides to Casterbridge
• VIII: A Water-side Hermit G visits hangman
• IX: A Rencounter G touches dead man’s neck, sees
Lodge & Rhoda, dies.
The Son’s Veto Tony Kytes, the Arch-Deceiver
• I: Sophy in wheelchair in front of bandstand & talks
to Randolph; R tells her off for incorrect grammar
& she thinks back to her childhood in ‘flashback’:
[ -servant girl at Gaymead for Mr
Twycott (vicar/parson), whose wife dies
-Sam & Sophy consider marriage but
do not go ahead with it
-Sophy becomes lame after fall
-She agrees to marry Mr T
-They moved to London
-R educated; Mr T now old & ill]
• II: Mr T dies & money / son’s education put in
power of trustees, so S bored; S & R grow apart;
she sees Sam on road & calls to him; explains
wants to be back in village & how her and R now in
different worlds
• III: Sam takes S for ride on cart; Sam asks S to
marry him; S tries to mention idea to R during
cricket match but fails; S tells R at home & he
reacts badly; S tries to persuade for 5 yrs & R
makes her vow she will not; funeral procession –
seems S has died
• Horse drawn cart returns to Longpuddle when
Mr Lackland joins & asks about villagers since he
left. The carrier tells story of Tony Kytes…
• Tony got engaged to Milly; gives Unity lift & she
tries to persuade him marry her instead; Unity
hides under sheet in wagon
• M gets on wagon; see Hannah & M hides under
sacks in wagon; T gives H lift
• T tells H he will try break engagement to M &
propose her instead; M overhears
• T sees father & gets off wagon
• Horse bolts; M & Unity argue; wagon overturns
• T says will marry H; H’s father tells her not to
• T asks all to marry him & marries the only one
who does not say no (Milly)
www.lostinwords.co.uk
 Absent-mindedness in a Parish Choir
• Players (musicians) are introduced; have played
many different Christmas events & very tired
• Sunday after Xmas: Longpuddle church gallery was
so cold they bought warm brandy & beer with them
• Players fell asleep during sermon
• Players woken & think are at party & play ‘The Devil
Among the Tailors’
• Parson shouts to stop but they don’t hear;
congregation are angry & get up; Squire says will
never play in church again
• Squire sent for barrel-organ to replace
• One of the people who seem to have been
recollecting this story then asks after Mrs Winter –
the groceress starts to tell her story
The Melancholy Hussar of the German
Legion
• I: Narrator describes downs & surrounding area &
imagines war there 90 yrs ago; recounts story Phyllis
told him about 32 yrs ago, when she was 75 & he
was 15….
P lived in seclusion with father in rural area
described at start; Humphrey Gould becomes
engaged to P; HG leaves & promises return few
weeks – he postpones this but writes regularly; York
Hussars arrive
• II: P sits on wall & Matthaus Tina passes by – this
continues over time & they get to know each other;
MT tells P of home-sickness of troops
• III: Rumour in village that HG did not consider the
engagement binding, P takes seriously but father
does not; P is late one day & MT loses stripes for
her; MT proposes & suggests they escape to his
country; father says he will send P to her aunt’s
• IV: P goes to wait to meet MT but sees HG on his
way to see her; tells MT she changed her mind; HG
sends her a mirror
• V: HG tells P he has married someone else; P
watches as MT is shot for desertion
The Distracted Preacher
• I: How his cold was cured Stockdale arrives & lodges
at Lizzy Newberry’s house; they get smuggled
alcohol together; S fancies her & L flirts
• II: How he saw two other men S hears L talking to
Owlett & sees another man watching L & O talk; S
asks L to marry him – she will not promise
• III: The mysterious greatcoat S goes to wake L & she
is not in room; S finds a greatcoat in his room; L says
coat is her late husband’s but S saw was muddy
• IV: At the time of the new moon S discovers L is
wearing greatcoat, follows her & discovers involved
in smuggling; asks her to promise she will stop but
she won’t
• V: How they went to Lulstead Cove S goes with L to
smuggle; Latimer rides by but does not stop; L & S
faces touch but S withdraws; L cries when alone
• VI: The great search at Nether-Moynton Excisemen
return & find contraband; villagers hide in church
tower; L leaves to unscrew wagon bolts
• VII: The walk to Warm’ell Cross and afterwards
Latimer has to wait for blacksmith to repair wagons;
excisemen tied up by villagers who steal back
contraband; L & S cannot agree so S leaves; 2 years
later the villagers are caught - S returns & marries L
www.lostinwords.co.uk