The Hand of Ethelberta

First edition title page

The Hand of Ethelberta: A Comedy in Chapters is a novel by Thomas Hardy, published in 1876. It was written, in serial form, for the Cornhill Magazine, which was edited by Leslie Stephen, a friend and mentor of Hardy's.

Plot summary

At the beginning of the book, we are told that Ethelberta was raised in humble circumstances but, through her work as a governess, married well at the age of eighteen. Her husband died two weeks after the wedding and, now twenty-one, Ethelberta lives with her mother-in-law, Lady Petherwin. In the three years that have elapsed since the deaths of both her husband and father-in-law, Ethelberta has been treated to foreign travel and further privilege by her benefactress, but restricted from seeing her poor family.

The events of the story concern Ethelberta's career as a famous poet and storyteller as she struggles to support her family and conceal her secret—that her father is a butler. Beautiful, clever, and rational, she easily attracts four very persistent suitors (Mr. Julian, Mr. Neigh, Mr. Ladywell, and Lord Mountclere), but is reluctant to give her much-coveted hand.

Illustrations by George du Maurier

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  "She Stopped Like a Clock"
  
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  "Round Her, Leaning Against Branches, or Prostrate on the Ground, Were Two or Three Individuals"
  
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  "Goodness! How Quick You Were"
  
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  "It Was A Tender Time"
  
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  "The Harefield Estate"
  
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  "So Ethelberta Went"
  
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  "Can You Tell Us the Way, Sir, to the Hotel Bold Soldier?"
  
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  "'In the Writing of the Composer', Observed Lord Mountclere with Interest"
  
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  "All Before Them Was A Sheet of Whiteness"
  
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  "She Lessened in His Gaze, and Was Soon Out of Sight"
  

External links

• The Hand of Ethelberta at Project Gutenberg
• The Hand of Ethelberta public domain audiobook at LibriVox