Bedside Lamp English Learning Reader IV: The Mayor of Casterbridge (English-Chinese Contrastive)

Author: Wang Ruoping
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-04-01
Features: The Mayor of Casterbridge is an important novel written by Thomas Hardy in 1886. The story takes place in 19th-century England. The protagonist, Michael Henchard, works hard and becomes wealthy, rising from an unknown laborer to the mayor's throne. Ultimately, due to his character flaws, he falls victim to fate and dies in poverty and loneliness.
Young Michael Henchard was a hay cutter, an honest and kind man. One night, after drinking too much, he sold his wife and daughter to a sailor named Newson for a mere few guineas. Upon sobering up, he regretted his actions deeply, swore to abstain from alcohol for twenty years, and worked hard to build a successful business. He gained respect and even became the Mayor of Casterbridge. Eighteen years later, when he decided to marry his lover Lucetta, his ex-wife appeared. Believing her sailor husband had drowned at sea, she brought her daughter, Elizabeth-Jane, to find Henchard. They reconciled, and he took her back.
However, due to his jealousy and exclusion of his business partner, Farfrae, as well as his stubborn and obstinate nature, Henchard's business failed, and he lost his position as mayor. After his ex-wife's death, he unexpectedly discovered that Elizabeth-Jane was not his biological daughter. This caused him great distress, and he began to treat her coldly. She had no choice but to move out and live with his old lover, Lucetta. Lucetta, who had originally planned to marry Henchard, later fell in love with Farfrae and married him. Farfrae became both a business and romantic rival to Henchard. Bankruptcy and humiliation left him in a desperate situation, and his scandalous act of selling his wife also spread. In his wretched state, he worked for Farfrae to support himself. Elizabeth became his only solace.
But his luck did not last long. Newson returned and reunited with his daughter, Elizabeth. At Elizabeth's wedding to Farfrae, he was treated with coldness. He quietly left Casterbridge and died in solitude and misery.