In which ways could Kipling's novel Kim be compared with Thomas Hardy's The Return of the Native?

Here are a couple of general comparisons to consider when
you are reviewing Kim and Return of the
Native.

1. Women as a Distraction:
In Kim, Kipling includes only a handful of women,
and they generally serve to distract the main male characters from their spiritual and
physical quests. Similarly, in Hardy's Return of the Native,
Eustacia almost prevents and later plays a role in ruining Wildeve and Thomasin's
marriage. More significantly, many in the village believe that Eustacia ruins Clym not
only by marrying him but also by holding him back from their high expectations for
him.

2. Search for Identity:
Throughout Kim, the title character searches not only for his
earthly identity and parentage but also for his philosophical purpose or being just as
other characters look for "enlightenment." While Eustacia's quest is not for spiritual
enlightenment, she does long for a sense of belonging. She never fits in with the
villagers who live around/on the heath, and she desires for a man to rescue her so that
she can escape to a place of high culture where she feels she will belong. Clym, who
becomes Eustacia's husband also wants a purpose in life. Although his mother and the
villagers cannot understand why he does not love Paris, Clym longs for something deeper
in life. In the end, after Eustacia's death, he seems to find it in his wilderness
"lectures."

There are other similarities and differences
between the novels; so see if you can come up with them, but keep in mind that the
authors, Kipling and Hardy, had quite different philosophical
perspectives.