Mood, Atmosphere and Place in The Return of the Native Throughout The Return of the Native, Thomas Hardy does a great job of creating mood and atmosphere. Some scenes are so descriptive that the reader can form a very clear mental image, resulting in a distinct sense of place. It seems that through his words Hardy immerses readers in his story, leaving us to participate only as spectators. It is at the beginning that the strongest mood, the heaviest atmosphere and the most obvious sense of place arise, for once the scene is set and the characters introduced, the scenario repeats itself very often. The book opens with an in-depth description of the moor. This is a perfect example of Hardy's ability to clearly describe a scene, giving us a sense of place, placing us on the moor. This moor, although seemingly simply the geographical location of the story, plays a very significant role. The role and symbolism of the moor is truly explored through some of Hardy's statements. “The sky being stretched with this pale screen, the earth with the darkest vegetation, their meeting line on the horizon was clearly marked.” This highlights the vivid contrast between earth and sky, leaving the reader with an image of the wild expanse of vegetation. Hardy describes the nature of the moor with the words "At the time it was a place perfectly in accord with the nature of man - neither hideous, hateful, nor ugly: neither... meaningless, nor tame; but as man despised and lasting..." . This is a description of the moor, which leaves the reader with a stronger sense of place, having...... middle of paper ......could be seen as the weakest character, Thomasin, achieving happiness. She is the only character who ends the story well, as with Wildeve's death she is free to leave a marriage in which she was very unhappy and marry the red man. Hardy shows, in "The Return of the Native," to be successful. in processing images in the minds of readers. Easily create moods and atmospheres with varied use of contradictory descriptions and images. It gives the reader a sense of place, by which it seems that although they are there and know what will happen, they cannot help the characters in any way. The reader is left close enough to feel most of the action, but has no power to intervene. This shows that Hardy is very successful in creating mood, atmosphere and sense of place.