# Fanny Robin — Far from the Madding Crowd character guide > Fanny Robin in Far from the Madding Crowd by Thomas Hardy. **Role:** supporting **Also known as:** Fanny, Fan, Little Fanny Robin, Fanny Robin Oak **First appearance:** 0012-xi-outside-the-barracks-snow-a-meeting ## Snapshot A poor, gentle young woman whose love for Troy leaves her destitute and whose fate shadows Bathsheba's marriage like a warning. ## Who they are Fanny is a former servant at the Everdene farm, soft-spoken and unlucky, who loved Sergeant Troy before Bathsheba ever met him and was left to bear the consequences alone. Her poverty and her silence make her nearly invisible to the parish, yet her story presses on Bathsheba's conscience and on the reader's sense of what Troy truly is. Her fate is the quiet tragedy against which the novel's grander passions are measured. ## Relationships ### [Bathsheba Everdene](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se/characters/bathsheba_everdene) _social_ Bathsheba and Fanny are acquaintances with a tense dynamic, as Fanny is a former servant and Troy's abandoned lover, creating jealousy and guilt for Bathsheba. ### [Frank Troy](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se/characters/frank_troy) _romantic_ Fanny is deeply in love with Frank Troy, who seduces and abandons her, leading to her tragic death from poverty and heartbreak. ### [Bathsheba Everdene](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se/characters/bathsheba_everdene) _social_ Bathsheba and Fanny are acquaintances with a tense dynamic, as Fanny is a former servant and Troy's abandoned lover, creating jealousy and guilt for Bathsheba. ### [Frank Troy](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se/characters/frank_troy) _romantic_ Fanny is deeply in love with Frank Troy, who seduces and abandons her, leading to her tragic death from poverty and heartbreak. ### [Frank Troy](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se/characters/frank_troy) _romantic_ Fanny is deeply in love with Frank Troy, who seduces and abandons her, leading to her tragic death from poverty and heartbreak. ### [Bathsheba Everdene](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se/characters/bathsheba_everdene) _social_ Bathsheba and Fanny are acquaintances with a tense dynamic, as Fanny is a former servant and Troy's abandoned lover, creating jealousy and guilt for Bathsheba. ## In the story ### [Recognition; A Timid Girl](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se/chapters/vii-recognition-a-timid-girl) The timid girl hiding behind a tree; she is poorly clad, shivers, and asks Gabriel to keep her secret. ### [The Malthouse; The Chat; News](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se/chapters/viii-the-malthouse-the-chat-news) Mentioned as having disappeared; Bathsheba fears she may have come to harm through a soldier lover. ### [IX: The Homestead; A Visitor; Half-Confidences](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se/chapters/ix-the-homestead-a-visitor-half-confidences) Mentioned as the subject of Boldwood's inquiry; she is missing and was once under his care. ### [Outside the Barracks; Snow; A Meeting](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se/chapters/xi-outside-the-barracks-snow-a-meeting) Fanny walks to the barracks in the snow to meet Sergeant Troy, reminding him of his promise to marry her. She is anxious, loving, and vulnerable. ### [XV: A Morning Meeting; The Letter Again](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se/chapters/xv-a-morning-meeting-the-letter-again) Her letter reveals plans to marry Sergeant Troy and returns a loan to Oak. ### [XVI: All Saints’ and All Souls’](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se/chapters/xvi-all-saints-and-all-souls) Fanny mistakenly goes to All Souls' instead of All Saints', causing the wedding to fail; she pleads with Troy to reschedule. ### [XXXIX: Coming Home; A Cry](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se/chapters/xxxix-coming-home-a-cry) Appears in extreme poverty, recognizes Troy, faints, and agrees to meet him on Monday at Grey's Bridge. ### [On Casterbridge Highway](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se/chapters/xl-on-casterbridge-highway) The exhausted and desperate woman traveling alone at night toward Casterbridge, using crutches and a dog for support. ### [XLI: Suspicion; Fanny Is Sent For](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se/chapters/xli-suspicion-fanny-is-sent-for) Reported dead in the Casterbridge Union workhouse; her tragic fate becomes a central revelation. ### [XLII: Joseph and His Burden; Buck’s Head](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se/chapters/xlii-joseph-and-his-burden-buck-s-head) Her coffin is transported and brought into Bathsheba's house; the inscription 'and child' is erased by Gabriel. ### [Fanny's Revenge](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se/chapters/xliii-fanny-s-revenge) Deceased; her body lies in the house, and her fate becomes the source of rumors and Bathsheba's torment. ### [Under a Tree; Reaction](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se/chapters/xliv-under-a-tree-reaction) Her corpse is being taken away for burial; Bathsheba repeatedly asks about her status. ### [Troy's Romanticism](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se/chapters/xlv-troy-s-romanticism) Fanny is dead; Troy's actions are driven by guilt over his treatment of her and his failed appointment. ### [The Gurgoyle: Its Doings](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se/chapters/xlvi-the-gurgoyle-its-doings) Her grave is the central focus; Troy's tombstone and flowers are for her. ### [XLVII: Adventures by the Shore](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se/chapters/xlvii-adventures-by-the-shore) Her death and its accessories haunt Troy as vivid, indelible images, driving him from Weatherbury. ### [XLVIII: Doubts Arise; Doubts Linger](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se/chapters/xlviii-doubts-arise-doubts-linger) Fanny's hair is found in Troy's watch, prompting Bathsheba to reflect on their relationship and her own place. ### [LVI: Beauty in Loneliness; After All](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se/chapters/lvi-beauty-in-loneliness-after-all) Deceased; her grave, originally marked by Troy, now also contains Troy's remains. ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se/characters/fanny_robin - Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se - All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/far_from_the_madding_crowd_se/characters