The countryside represents the middle class, the suburban, and the common. It is the symbolic opposite of the Court, lacking gratuitous luxury, fame, or the admiration of others. The residents of the country are simple people who offer simple but tangible value to the world. Although the people of the Court look down upon the people of the countryside, the people of the countryside do not seem bothered by it. The simple, positive portrayal of the countryside reflects Wilde’s own fondness for the simple, moral middle class, even though he himself was not a part of it. In the story, the Duck is the quintessential resident of the countryside, being kind, honest, and pragmatic. She does not care for the Rocket’s boast of status or genealogy, for she does not see any practical function that he can offer to society. Rather than pursue the prestige of public life, the Duck has herself decided to settle for domesticity, caring for her family, and invites the Rocket to do the same.
The Frog offers a nuance to the countryside’s representation of the middle class, in that he possesses the same pride and delusion that characterizes high society (and, by extension, the Rocket himself). Although the Frog does not carry the same pretense of remarkable genealogy or social status as the Courtiers and the Rocket do, he is nevertheless convinced that his croaking is the most beautiful sound in the world to everyone who hears it. The Frog demonstrates that merely belonging to the middle class does not preclude one from prideful delusion, though it does make it significantly less likely.
The Countryside Quotes in The Remarkable Rocket
[The Rocket] actually burst into real tears, which flowed down his stick like raindrops, and nearly drowned two little beetles, who were just thinking of setting up house together, and were looking for a nice dry spot to live in.
“Bad Rocket? Bad Rocket?” he said as he whirled through the air; “impossible! Grand Rocket, that is what the man said. Bad and Grand sound very much the same, indeed they often are the same.”
“[…] I like to do all the talking myself. It saves time, and prevents arguments [...] Arguments are extremely vulgar, for everybody in good society holds exactly the same opinions.”
“I don't think much of that,” said the Duck, “as I cannot see what use it is to any one. Now, if you could plough the fields like the ox, or draw a cart like the horse, or look after the sheep like the collie-dog, that would be something.”
“I had thoughts of entering public life once myself,” answered the Duck; “there are so many things that need reforming. Indeed, I took the chair at a meeting some time ago, and we passed resolutions condemning everything that we did not like. However, they did not seem to have much effect. Now I go in for domesticity and look after my family.”
The Countryside Symbol Timeline in The Remarkable Rocket
