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Mayor of Casterbridge (Barnes & Noble Classics Series) [NOOK Book]
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Thomas Hardy’s first masterpiece, The Mayor of Casterbridge opens with a scene of such heartlessness and cruelty that it still shocks readers today. A poor workman named Michael Henchard, in a fit of drunken rage, sells his wife and baby daughter to a stranger at a country fair. Stricken with remorse, Henchard forswears alcohol and works hard to become a prosperous businessman and the respected mayor of Casterbridge. But he cannot erase his past. His wife ultimately returns to offer Henchard the choice of redemption or a further descent into his own self-destructive nature. A dark, complex story, The Mayor of Casterbridge brims with invention, vitality, and even wit.
Phillip Lopate, a professor at Hofstra University in New York City, is best known as an essayist (Bachelorhood,” Against Joie De Vivre,” Portrait of My Body”). He is the editor of the anthology Art of the Personal Essay and has written a novel, The Rug Merchant, and a book of poetry, The Daily Round.
Although Hardy was a gifted student at the local schools he attended as a boy for eight years, his lower-class social origins limited his further educational opportunities. At sixteen, he was apprenticed to architect James Hicks in Dorchester and began an architectural career primarily focused on the restoration of churches. In Dorchester Hardy was also befriended by Horace Moule, eight years Hardy's senior, who acted as an intellectual mentor and literary adviser throughout his youth and early adulthood. From 1862 to 1867 hardy worked in London for the distinguished architect Arthur Blomfeld, but he continued to study -- literature, art, philosophy, science, history, the classics -- and to write, first poetry and then fiction.
In the early 1870s Hardy's first two published novels, Desperate Remedies and Under the Greenwood Tree, appeared to little acclaim or sales. With his third novel, A Pair of Blue Eyes, he began the practice of serializing his fiction in magazines prior to book publication, a method that he would utilize throughout his career as a novelist. In 1874, the year of his marriage to Emma Gifford of St. Juliot, Cornwall, Hardy enjoyed his first significant commercial and critical success with the book publication of Far from the Madding Crowd after its serialization in the Cornhill Magazine. Hardy and his wife lived in several locations in London, Dorset, and Somerset before settling in South London for three years in 1878. During the late 1870s and early 1880s, Hardy published The Return of the Native, The Trumpet-Major, A Laodicean, and Two on a Tower while consolidating his pace as a leading contemporary English novelist. He would also eventually produce four volumes of short stories: Wessex Tales, A Group of Noble Dames, Life's Little Ironies, and A Changed Man.
In 1883, Hardy and his wife moved back to Dorchester, where Hardy wrote The Mayor of Casterbridge, set in a fictionalized version of Dorchester, and went on to design and construct a permanent home for himself, named Max Gate, completed in 1885. In the later 1880s and early 1890s Hardy wrote three of his greatest novels, The Woodlanders, Tess of the d'Urbevilles, and Jude the Obscure, all of them notable for their remarkable tragic power. The latter two were initially published as magazine serials in which Hardy removed potentially objectionable moral and religious content, only to restore it when the novels were published in book form; both novels nevertheless aroused public controversy for their criticisms of Victorian sexual and religious mores. In particular, the appearance of Jude the Obscure in 1895 precipitated harsh attacks on Hardy's alleged pessimism and immorality; the attacks contributed to his decision to abandon the writing of fiction after the appearance of his last-published novel, The Well-Beloved.
In the later 1890s Hardy returned to the writing of poetry that he had abandoned for fiction thirty years earlier. Wessex Poems appeared in 1898, followed by several volumes of poetry at regular intervals over the next three decades. Between 1904 and 1908 Hardy published a three-part epic verse drama, The Dynasts, based on the Napoleonic Wars of the early nineteenth century. Following the death of his first wife in 1912, Hardy married his literary secretary Florence Dugdale in 1914. Hardy received a variety of public honors in the last two decades of his life and continued to publish poems until his death at Max Gate on January 11, 1928. His ashes were interred in the Poets' Corner of Westminster Abbey in London and his heart in Stinsford outside Dorchester. Regarded as one of England's greatest authors of both fiction and poetry, Hardy has inspired such notable twentieth-century writers as Marcel Proust, John Cowper Powys, D. H. Lawrence, Theodore Dreiser, and John Fowles.
Author biography from the Barnes & Noble Classics edition of Far from the Madding Crowd.
Inevitably, in analyzing this book, we must start with the novel's protagonist, since no other Hardy novel is quite so dominated by a single character. Michael Henchard has rightly been hailed as one of the unforgettable characters in fiction. "He takes his place at once with certain towering and possessed figures of Melville, Hawthorne, and Dostoevsky," wrote Albert Guerard (in Thomas Hardy; see "For Further Reading"). The novel's subtitle, "The Story of a Man of Character," is meant to lead us directly into the knot of Henchard's personality. Some of Hardy's contemporary critics took exception to this formulation, since Michael Henchard errs so often that he seems precisely to lack what Victorian moralists would have called "character." However, we should remember what Hardy's contemporary, Friedrich Nietzsche, once wryly asserted: that making the same mistake over and over was a true sign of character. In any case, Hardy clearly uses the word "character" here less as approbation than as shorthand for the set of habits, traits, and foibles that may determine a person's destiny. To drive home that point, he even inserts in his text a quote from Novalis: "Character is Fate."
When we first meet Michael Henchard, he is a young, disgruntled itinerant farmhand, unemployed and saddled with a wife and child. He is also a heavy drinker, which leads him into an appalling folly: He sells his wife, Susan, and baby girl, Elizabeth-Jane, at a county fair. In his book Thomas Hardy, Irving Howe comments on the shocking but also outrageously liberating undercurrents of this act, at least for some male readers: "To shake loose from one's wife; to discard that drooping rag of a woman, with her mute complaints and maddening passivity; to escape not by a slinking abandonment but through the public sale of her body to a stranger, as horses are sold at a fair; and thus to wrest, through sheer amoral willfulness, a second chance out of life—it is with this stroke, so insidiously attractive to male fantasy, that The Mayor of Casterbridge begins. In the entire history of European fiction there are few more brilliant openings." Elaine Showalter, in "The Unmanning of The Mayor of Casterbridge," has correctively pointed out that Howe and many other male critics neglect to mention an aspect of the wife-sale that is potentially much more disturbing to women readers: It included their child as well.
Awakening from his drunken stupor, he vows not to touch a drop of alcohol for the next twenty years. But he remains, as the novelist Rick Moody has shrewdly observed, "a dry drunk," with all the unresolved inner impulses of alcoholic sentimentality and hostility, now barely held in check by sobriety. Hardy skips over the next two decades, during which, we learn, Henchard has risen to become a wealthy, powerful grain merchant, and gotten himself elected Mayor of Casterbridge, the thriving town to which he has resettled. Initially, the sale of his family seems to have had just the sort of positive effect on the burdened Henchard that he intended. It releases his energies and talents, so that he is able to carve out a position of financial power and respect in a new place. True, he is alone, cut off from love and intimacy, but this seems to him a fair price to pay, on the whole.
When his rejected wife Susan returns and seeks him out, he remarries her, mostly out of duty and penance. After she dies, a former lover of Henchard's, Lucetta, arrives on the scene, and a Hardyesque romantic triangle ensues between Lucetta, Henchard, and his Scottish assistant, Donald Farfrae. Eventually the wife-sale episode of twenty years earlier comes to light by happenstance in a police court at which Henchard is presiding. "On that day—almost at that minute—he passed the ridge of prosperity and honour, and began to descend rapidly on the other side," Hardy tells us, with a structurally tidy sentence that diagrams all too neatly (and deceptively) the book's narrative arc.
Summarized this way, the novel would appear to be a severe, straightforward tragedy: A man commits a shameful act in his youth, then rises to prominence, at which point the truth of his earlier misdeed surfaces, leading to his downfall. But what makes the book so much more interesting is the way the narrative keeps slipping the noose of inevitability, even as the laws of causation and retribution bear down hard. First of all, Henchard is well into his fall from grace long before his twenty-year-old error is exposed; second, he is given countless chances after this public exposure to redeem himself, which he does and does not take up; third, public opinion in Casterbridge soon forgets, or stops caring about, his old repellent act. The townsfolk have their own worries. Hardy uses them both as a Greek chorus commenting on its masters' actions, and as a set of idiosyncratic individuals, whose debates, for instance, about whether it is appropriate to rob the pennies from a corpse's eyelids place Henchard's tragic scandal in a more forgiving, everyday perspective.
Henchard and Casterbridge form alternating strands of narrative tension and attention. For a while, Henchard is the town's "monarch," so to speak, and he bears on his shoulders the solitudinous anxiety of a Shakespearian king. But Henchard is also lowborn, an ex-laborer, and his dilemma about how to act, his irritable testiness, derive in part from uncomfortably straddling two social classes. A self-invented man, he is desperately in need of self-knowledge to connect the two halves of his life.
Anonymous
Posted December 27, 2011
Though some parts in the beginning of the book drag on a bit, the plot soon thickens. Each new event is unexpected and adds to the complexity of the writing. Many charchers evolve over the course of the book and you grow attached to them amd want to learn more aout their life. Overall the book is a good read for anyone interested in olden setting books with higher level vocabulary. Very enjoyable book :)
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Posted September 7, 2009
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Diving into The Mayor of Casterbridge with the highest of expectations, I found myself sorely disappointed after finishing the first third (or thereabouts) of the novel. Let's just say that, well, honestly, the first several chapters set the boo...k up for failure. Who doesn't know about Michael Henchard (the titular mayor, though his time in office occupies very little of the substance of the book) and his sale of his wife to an unassuming sailor in the first few pages? Such a scene brims with literary possibility, and Hardy did not disappoint--per se. However, as I read, I could not ward off the nagging dread that Hardy forced many of his plot twists just to keep readers entertained--he did serialize the novel before publishing it in book format, after all. Additionally, the first half of the book, though somewhat necessary to establish the characters, lacks much of the interest of the second half of the narrative. Nevertheless, this said second half is a true gem--so much so, in fact, that it largely makes up for its less-than-sterling earlier counterpart. Certainly worth the read, The Mayor of Casterbridge, at its best, is an excellent character study. Highly recommended!
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Posted January 4, 2009
As a high school student, I wasn't too excited when I first picked up "The Mayor of Casterbridge" for my required reading. However, I was pleasantly surprised. Though in my opinion it is not a quick read (for there are slow parts in the plot that can be hard to get through), the overall story was extremely touching and memorable. Also, the language was very easy to understand without being too simple. I highly recommend.
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Posted December 17, 2007
Hardy gives a good account of how one evil choice can lead to many others when a person seeks redemption without confession. Michael Henchard wants to improve himself but he never wants to reveal his past. Henchard swears off liquor but he never confesses why he has done so. Thomas Hardy really seems to understand many of our own thought processes as we decide we can make up for our past transgressions if we only really lead a good life. The mayor's past continually comes back on him until he finally has no place to turn. It is not a heart warming feel good book but it is a good read.
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Posted April 16, 2007
If there ever was a story that could be described as one representing the essence of the human condition, The Mayor of Casterbridge would be it. I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading about matters of the heart, and the mistakes people make, some out of good intentions. The English countryside with its cozy feel and people comes alive through Hardy's canvases, and The Mayor of Casterbridge is no exception. This book is British literature at its best.
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Posted December 1, 2006
Here is an excelent book. The story of ones mans selfishness and his ultimate lesson. There is something every human can learn from this book. We are all at one point like the mayor.
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Posted June 21, 2006
I choose to read this book for an English project and was grateful I did. The author has your attention from the first 5 pages when the main character gets drunk and sells his wife at a fair.
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Posted August 28, 2005
This is such a wonderful and engrossing story about a man who lives with the consequences of a reckless deed he committed when he was young. It is a tragic novel, but oh, so well written and so compelling! I couldn't put it down! I absolutely loved it!!! This Barnes and Noble edition is superb! The introduction is very informative and the notes are excellent, adding so much to the enjoyment of the book.
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Posted August 14, 2005
This is a fantastic must-read novel. Thomas Hardy gives life to his colorful characters expressing just about every human emotion such as love, hate, jealousy, sorrow, perseverance, forgiveness, and much more!
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Posted May 19, 2005
A beautiful touching tragedy. Hardy creates rich characters in all his works but Michael Henchard exceeds all.
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Posted August 29, 2004
Thomas Hardy completely came out of nowhere and shocked me with this novel. It had been on my shelf for about half a year and this summer I read it. It only took about 4 days, and it was absolutely breathtaking. The contrast between the major characters, and the descriptions of the panoramic views were the perfect 1, 2 combo.
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Posted March 31, 2004
I was required to read this novel for Literature. It is does at some points become boring, and the ending is anti-climatic but the plot twists are entertaining. The premise is even intriguing that a guy sells his wife over a drunken bet!
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Posted January 6, 2003
As soon as I saw the movie was an adeptation of Thomas Hardy's book "The Mayor of Casterbridge" I put a tape in my VCR and watched it and taped it at the same time because after having read so many of Thomas Hardy's books I knew it would be great. I've watched it again and again and invited my daughter to watch it. He was an exceptional writer for that period and I enjoy his books and I wish that they would do more of his work. I may have seen "Tess" a few years ago. I wish it would come out again. Maybe "The Movie Channel" will do it if its doable. Great movie and great books! "The Claim"
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Posted January 21, 2012
I first read this book in middle school. It took me a while to finish but the questions it raises are universal and only more important as we age.
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Posted December 20, 2009
This book is the synthesis of masterful writing, character development, and brilliant description. In itself, the book deserves the highest opinions amongst readers as one of the most enveloping reads Victorian England could have produced. However, the characters are so far from this beautiful perfection, that the contrast is angering and very frustrating, especially when we see the failings of the human heart, of the birth of weakness in the strong, of arrogant usurpation of the old by the new. It is a book you love to hate or hate to love.
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Posted September 19, 2009
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The genius of "The Mayor of Casterbridge" is in depicting a character you start out loathing, who improves himself only to be defamed when his past catches up with him. The titular character is a difficult person to empathize with and is one of the greater reasons why my interest was captured. Except for perhaps Humbert in "Lolita" (Nabakov) and the main character in "Disgrace" (Coetzee), there may not be a more difficult protagonist to like.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.In the opening of this book, Michael Henchard, is introduced as a man who is focused solely on his shortcomings with wealth and his fate to be tied to his family whom he views as a hindrance to him.
Very early on in the story Hardy creates a scene in which Henchard is coaxed into public drunkenness where he proceeds to sell his wife and child to anyone willing to partake in his auction. The spectacle, however, is shortlived and before long Henchard is dreaming in his chair. The following morning as he rises he finds his loved ones missing and much to his dismay he soon recognizes his error.
This initial act continues to play a role in the character's conduct and motives throughout the events that follow. Because Henchard is never able to recover from his past wrongdoings, misfortune seems to shadow everything he happens upon.
As Donald Farfrae comes into the story it becomes clear from his successes that he has been introduced to foil the obscure Michael Henchard. This overt contradiction only adds to the downward spiral; hence in every area that Henchard has failed Farfrae has flourished.
With a handful of seemingly ordinary characters, Hardy has woven an intricate narration of scandal, revenge, and ultimately atonement. This book is an absolute classic!
Anonymous
Posted June 12, 2005
this novel was originally written in installments in a magazine; perhaps it would be a stronger story if read in that manor. the major flaw with 'mayor of casterbridge' is the lack of a climax. the first chapter gave me hope, but the rest was like a bad sequel.
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Posted July 3, 2009
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Posted October 26, 2011
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Overview
The Mayor of Casterbridge, by Thomas Hardy, is part of the Barnes & Noble Classics series, which offers quality editions at affordable prices to the student and the general reader, including new scholarship, thoughtful design, and pages of carefully crafted extras. Here are some of the remarkable features of Barnes & Noble Classics: