The Mayor of Casterbridge

The novel tells the tragic story of Michael Henchard, a hay-trusser who, in a fit of drunken rage and impulsivity at a country fair, sells his wife, Susan, and infant daughter to a sailor for five guineas. Filled with remorse the next day, Henchard vows to abstain from alcohol for twenty-one years. Over the next eighteen years, he successfully establishes himself as a prosperous grain merchant and rises to the respected position of Mayor of Casterbridge. His prosperous life and hard-earned respect are threatened when his past returns: his wife and daughter unexpectedly seek him out, forcing him to confront his shameful secret and his own flawed nature. The story explores themes of fate, ambition, rivalry, redemption, and the lasting consequences of youthful mistakes, all set against the vivid backdrop of a rural English community.

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