Introduction Chapter 1 Ecocriticism and Hardy's Ecological Thoughts 1.1 An Overview of Ecocriticism 1.2 Hardy's Ecological Thoughts Chapter 2 Spirit of Place: Hardy's Depiction of the Natural Environment 2.1 The iet Pastoral Setting in Far from the Madding Crowd 2.2 Symbolic Sense of Nature in Tess of the D'Urbervilles . Nature as an Independent Entity in The Return of the Native Chapter 3 Spirit of Place: The Relationship between Hardy's People and Nature 3.1 Characters Close to Nature 3.2 Characters Alienate fo Nature 3.3 Characters Returning to Nature Chapter 4 Spirit of Place: Hardy's Influence on Other British Ecological Novels Exemplified by Rebecca 4.1 The Natural World in Rebecca 4.2 The Human World in Rebecca Conclusion References Appendices Afterword