First, Henchard is the main character of the story, and while he stands initially as the protagonist, he is also his own antagonist by selling his wife and infant child in a makeshift auction, possessing an obscene amount of hubris, and refusing to adopt an honest attitude. Michael first description of him tells the reader that Henchard’s gait is full of “a dogged and cynical indifference” (Hardy 5). Henchard is then described as “overbearing – even brilliantly quarrelsome” while he and Susan are eating furmity at a table inside a food booth (Hardy 10). Henchard’s first major fault of selling his kin is initiated by his desire for alcohol. His low self-esteem, loneliness, and a propensity to depression are the central forces that lead him to drink, for he is out of work and seemingly locked into a marriage he has no desire to participate in (Bump). Furthermore, his actions toward Susan and Elizabeth Jane are appalling, both before they are sold and after they have reunited with him 19 years later. While in the furmity tent, Henchard says, “I married at eighteen, like the fool that I was; and this is the consequence o’t,” proclaiming indirectly that Susan and his daughter mean nothing to him (Hardy 10; Bump). Later, as Henchard and Susan meet in the Roman-styled arena in Casterbridge, Henchard uses Susan as a scapegoat and asks her “how could you be so simple?...But – to lead me into this!” (Hardy 70). Through Michael Henchard’s foul and insulting treatment of Susan, he portrays himself as a belligerent, chauvinistic, and insecure child rather than as a sensible, mature adult (Bump).
Additionally, Henchard is portrayed by Hardy as a greedy man whose endeavors to acquire possessions are not limited to inanimate objects. In his marriage to Susan Newson, he requests of her and Elizabeth-Jane that the latter take his last name and formally be called “Miss Henchard” (Hardy 85). Henchard’s request turns into a forceful gesture, saying that he’ll “advertise it in the Casterbridge paper…She won’t object” (Hardy 85). Then, when Elizabeth-Jane asked him in sincerity of his request later in the day, he becomes like a petulant teen and insults her gender by saying, “what an ado you women make about a trifle!” (Hardy 85). Henchard’s desire for Elizabeth-Jane’s last name to be his reflects an unsettling idea of owning another individual, much akin to the concept of imprisonment through slavery. By taking Michael Henchard’s surname, Elizabeth-Jane binds herself to her step-father’s ownership of her name and physical person, and in so doing imprisons herself within the jail of his verbal and emotional abuse (Asquith). Henchard, as depicted by Hardy, is a sullen, bitter pessimist whose unchecked, insulting comments and unwavering greed are his ultimate downfall.
Second, Hardy’s word choice is exceptionally accurate and allows for the scene being described to carry its own distinct tone and stand alone as a singular, memorable instance. Following Susan Henchard’s death, Michael Henchard opens a letter addressed to him to be opened on Elizabeth-Jane’s wedding day. In opening this sealed envelope prematurely, he discovers that the Elizabeth-Jane who sleeps in his home presently is not, in fact, his daughter, but Newson’s: a second Elizabeth-Jane to replace the first who had died three weeks after being sold with her mother. As Henchard approaches his step-daughter’s door, Hardy begins a sequence of descriptions characterized by choice words, which all hold negative connotations (Carroll). He first begins with words such as “dead,” “overwhelms,” “misery,” and “sinister” to create an ominous tone for the scene (Hardy 119). These words reflect Henchard’s feelings exactly: he has been lied to by his now deceased wife and is now devoid of a biological daughter of his own. His remorse and anger of his wife’s death now mingles with his biological daughter’s loss; Hardy reflects Henchard’s emotions even further in the text with words like “impish trick,” “infernal harpies,” and “sullen” which parallel his anger at being tricked for 19 years (Hardy 119).
Furthermore, Hardy’s description of the witch-like Elizabeth-Jane kneeling before the fire is particularly haunting, and his word choice specifically centers on words that contain sharp “s” and hard “c” sounds. Words such as “lothness,” “passion,” “desire,” and “spark” contain an intense and sensual cadence when linked together so closely and mirror the hiss of a fire, while the “p” sound in “passion” and “spark” simulate the popping sound of over stimulated bits of log (Hardy 161). Hardy also uses words like “depicted” and “contour,” to simulate the hard crackling sound of fire consuming raw wood (Hardy 161). He ends with calling Elizabeth-Jane a “discerning silent witch”; this description contains the “s” of hissing flames and another noise: that of a final snapping sound made by the sharp sound of the “t” in words “silent” and “witch” (Hardy 161). Coincidentally, Elizabeth could be said to “snap” out of her reverie immediately following these words as Lucetta interrupts her fireside witchcraft (Tassone).
Finally, Hardy’s genius use of symbolism is apparent is his portrayal of the bull which charges toward Elizabeth-Jane and Lucetta while they walk in the countryside. The bull is outwardly described as “disfigured at present by splotches of mud about his seamy sides…gristle [on] his nose,” and as bulls are large animals, the reader can safely assume that this bull is of a large size (Hardy 192). Hardy then goes on to describe the bull’s temperament: “the bull was an old one, too savage to be driven, which had in some way escaped the staff being the means by which the drover controlled him” and then “the bull advanced in a deliberate charge” (Hardy 192). The bull, closely resembling Michael Henchard in size and disposition, is charging upon these women just as Henchard aggressively attacks them with commands and insults (Carroll). Henchard is a large man, whose insides are disfigured by greed, pride, and malice. Ironically enough, it is Henchard who saves Lucetta and Elizabeth-Jane from his own animal equal.
Lastly, following Henchard’s meeting with and dismissal of Richard Newson, he ventures to the stone bridge where he often lingers. After taking off his coat and cap and presenting himself to the prospect of death, he looks below into the river: “and then he perceived with a sense of horror that it was himself” (Hardy 273). In seeing a reflection of himself floating in the water, Henchard sees his past. Henchard’s effigy in the river is symbolic of his past persona, which has been abandoned by him in favor of a softer one. Henchard, realizing that the figure in the river is an exact duplicate of himself, is moved to ask Elizabeth, “Are miracles still worked, do ye think, Elizabeth?” (Hardy 274). His question to Elizabeth has a double meaning: has he been saved from drowning himself by the fear of his own reflection in the river, and will he be saved from living out the rest of his life in bitterness? (Asquith).
The exterior of Hardy’s novel presents readers with a plot that is similar to a rollercoaster: twisted, complicated, and exhilarating. However, the interior presents a much more fascinating adventure: Hardy’s characters are rich with humanity; his words are precisely chosen; his symbolism is clever and accurate. The Mayor of Casterbridge is a strong and gripping example of skillful writing and intricate design, and through its vibrant characters, diction, and symbolism, it becomes a well-rounded and invigorating example of Victorian literature.
Works Cited
Asquith, Mark. "Caged birds: Mark Asquith explores self-knowledge in The Mayor of Casterbridge."The English Review Apr. 2004: 8+. Academic OneFile. Web. 19 Nov. 2010.
Bump, Jerome. "The family dynamics of the reception of art." Style Summer 1997: 328+. Academic OneFile. Web. 23 Nov. 2010.
Carroll, Joseph, et al. "Quantifying tonal analysis in The Mayor of Casterbridge."
Style Spring-Summer 2010: 164+. Academic OneFile. Web. 23 Nov. 2010.
Hardy, Thomas. The Mayor of Casterbridge. Ed. Phillip Lopate. New York: Barnes & Noble Classics, 2004. Print.
Tassone, Marlena. “Thomas Hardy's The Mayor of Casterbridge As an Aristotelian Tragedy.” The Victorian Web. 2006. Web. 21 Nov. 2010.
Image:
'Hay-trussing — ?' said the turnip-hoer, who had already begun shaking his head. 'o no.'" by Robert Barnes. Plate 1, Thomas Hardy's The Mayor of Casterbridge, which appeared in The Graphic, 2 January 1886. Scanned image and text by Philip V. Allingham.
(1 December 2010)
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