Theme of Marriage in The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion by Thomas Hardy

In “The Melancholy Hussar of the German Legion '' by Thomas Hardy, marriage is portrayed as an obligation for women in order to advance social status, leading to unhappy marriages. The idea is established through the use of characterization, dreadful diction, and allusions. 

In the short story, it is shown that marriage is solely for the benefit of a woman’s reputation. Phyllis made the decision to marry a man named Humphrey due to his high social status. Humphrey Gold is characterized as “neither young nor old; neither good-looking nor positively plain”, revealing he is average and boring. Phyllis clearly sees nothing special in Humphrey, so she isn’t in love with him. It’s understood that her only motive for marrying him is because she would benefit through gaining a better reputation and wealth, as it’s revealed earlier in the passage that her social condition was “twilight”, meaning lower class. Marriage is the only way to advance her life, so it is an obligation for her to marry well.  Phyllis is characterized as submissive to portray marriage as an obligation. It says that Phyllis was “though lonely in the extreme, content.” She knew that she was going to have to marry a higher class man, and accepted that it was Humphrey because he wasn’t mean. The word content isn’t usually used to describe someone’s feeling when they are engaged- more likely excited and thrilled. She is said to be lonely because she is not in love- as the marriage is forced and to better her name. Later in the story she said that “her promise must be kept” to marry Humphrey. She feels obligated to do so, showing she is submissive to men. If she had left the marriage, her reputation would have plummeted, so she did what she felt she had to and stayed. Her sacrifice of a potential fulfilling and happy life illustrates how flawed and shallow society is, and that true love means much more.

Hardy highlights the struggle of women having to marry men they don’t love because status is most important in society. After Phyllis had to make the decision to leave Matthaus, dreadful diction was used to describe her feelings about the departure. For her future plans, Phyllis said that “she would stay at home, and marry him, and suffer.” The use of the word “suffer” describes how miserable life with an average man like Humphrey would be. She knew her heart longed to be with Matthaus, but in society status trumps true love, so she had to follow her role and marry a rich man for her and her father’s benefit. Even though she did not want to marry Humphrey, she had to sacrifice her well being so her reputation wouldn’t be ruined for being with a lower class hussar. After overhearing that Humphrey stayed loyal to her, Phyllis “bitterly reproached herself.” The word “bitterly” highlights her disappointment that Humphrey still wanted to marry her. She knew that if Humphrey canceled the engagement, her reputation wouldn’t be ruined for leaving him for a hussar, and she would be able to marry Mathhaus and be happy . But when she discovered that he was coming to visit and make it up to her, she was dreading the thought that it was now her responsibility to stay loyal to and marry Humphrey. It can be depicted that she no longer cared about marrying a higher status since she found someone she loved, but due to social expectations, she was obligated to do so.

As Phylis and Mathhaus continued to meet by the wall, she continued to fall in love with him. This love compared to Humphrey and Phyllis’ relationship represents the contrast between the two, and how much happier she is with Matthaus. To describe Phyllis and the hussar’s love, the text says “like desdemona, she pitied him.” This allusion explains how the two’s love is similar, as both Othello and Matthaus told their life story and made the women fall in love. When looking at the relationship of Phyllis with Humphrey compared to Matthaus, it’s clear that the engagement is only for social status, not real connection. Her, and other women, have to sacrifice what they truly want for the societal “rules”. Another allusion was used when she said her goodbyes to Matthaus. Phyllis is compared to Cleopatra of Egypt, since she seeked to run back to Matthus and leave with him. She felt that she couldn’t, and was obligated to stay home and loyal to her fiance, similar to Cleopatra’s decisions. Phyllis knew that if she hadn’t married Humphrey, her social conditions would stay the same or worsen, creating the obligation of marriage for her and other women.

In “The Melancholy Hussar”, the idea that women are pressured to marry to advance social status and reputation is portrayed by Thomas Hardy utilizing characterization of Phyllis and Humphrey, dreadful diction when Phyllis has to leave her lover, and alluding to past women with similar experiences.