Far from the Madding Crowd Chapter XIII

In which Bathsheba and her lively companion Liddy pass a Sunday afternoon by engaging in a quaint form of divination with an old Bible, and Bathsheba, stirred by thoughts of love and jest, impulsively sends a valentine with a curious seal to the reserved and dignified Mr. Boldwood. The mood is lightly playful yet touched with the subtle unease of unspoken feelings and social expectations within the ageing farmhouse’s shadowy warmth.