Mayor of Casterbridge

Author: [British] Thomas Hardy, translated by Zeng Hu
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-10-01
Features: The Mayor of Casterbridge is one of Hardy's representative works. Young and impulsive, Henchard once made a great mistake after drinking, selling his wife and daughter to a sailor. Several years later, he became the Mayor of Casterbridge, and his wife and daughter suddenly appeared, bringing the family together. After that, he found a capable Scottish man as his assistant. However, his weakness in character struck him down again. He gradually fell into disgrace, until he was abandoned by all and died in loneliness. Through the various twists of fate and dramatic conflicts in the story, the author expresses his lament that "character is destiny" and "happiness is merely a episode."