Thomas Hardy 
Two on a Tower (Annotated) 

• This edition includes the editor’s introduction: ‘Two on a Tower, ‘ a novel surrounded by controversy.

First published in 1882, “Two on a Tower” is a novel by English author Thomas Hardy, classified by him as a romance. The novel is one of Hardy’s
Wessex
novels, set in late Victorian Dorset.

“Two on a Tower” is Hardy’s ninth novel and contains perhaps his most complete treatment of the theme of love across the class and age divide, and also the fullest expression of his fascination with astronomy and science.



“Two on a Tower” tells the story of the unhappily married Lady Constantine. who breaks all the rules of social decorum when she falls in love with Swithin St. Cleeve, an astronomer who is ten years her junior. Her husband’s death leaves the lovers free to marry, but the discovery of a legacy forces them apart…