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Summary Mayor of Casterbridge Notes
Chapter by chapter analysis with notes on setting and characters
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The Mayor of CasterbridgeBy Thomas Hardy
Chapter 1
- Chapter of unpleasant events: barren land, unemployment, dust
- Unhealthy marital relationship —> "atmosphere of stale familiarity"
- Michael is not satis ed w/1 or 2 bowls of spiked furmity and he becomes boisterous
from the effects
- Susan realizes that women were completely dependent upon their husbands ∴ leaves
w/sailor
- Michael connects horse auction to selling his wife —> sees women as property
- Susan is used to Michael’s poor treatment of her but crosses a line this time
- Sailor quali es his “purchase” of Susan by asking for her agreement, demonstrating he
cares more about her free will + happiness than husband does
- Susan throwing away wedding ring re ects the end of her marriage
- Sharp contrast between the emotional events in the tent and the serene natural world
outside
- Michael perceives the child as HIS, not hers or theirs
Chapter 2
- Wedding ring + money = physical reminders of last night’s events
- Michael shows pride + determination
- Pride = unwilling to reveal the shame he has brought on himself + relieved he didn’t
say his name at the fair (shows understanding that he did something wrong)
- Michael worried more about how others will see him than feeling guilty
- Blames Susan for her choice as it puts him in a bad light
- Michael’s dedicated search for his wife and child re ect a commitment + sense of duty
to his family
- HOWEVER, his search is hampered by his unwillingness to tell the full story ∴ he
places his own reputation above familial duty
Chapter 3
- Same setting, different time
- Mother-daughter bond as they hold hands
- Sadness over death of sailor proves his kindness
- The reduction of animal auctions at the fair may re ect the changing roles of women
- Susan concealing the truth from daughter re ects the still-painful nature of the situation
- Susan searches for her husband —> reader curious as to why she needs to nd him
otherwise she would never see him again
THE MAYOR OF CASTERBRIDGE THOMAS HARDY
, - "Don't speak to her — it isn't respectable!” —> Elizabeth-Jane is excessively concerned
about propriety
- Furmity woman’s downfall contrasts Michael’s rise to success
- Henchard’s message to the furmity-woman re ects some faith that he might one day be
reunited with Susan, or that Susan might seek him out
Chapter 4
- Susan seeks Michael for daughter’s bene t
- Richard’s death relieved Susan from responsibility/duty
- Hardy heightens suspense by mentioning Henchard's name w/o the disclosure of
details —> foreshadows his prominence + importance
- Susan likes to keep things secret + discrete ie: her dealings with Henchard
- Extensive description of town —> Hardy’s use of concrete detail is a constant feature of
realism
Chapter 5
- Susan doesn't know Michael as kind + forgiving ∴ is intimidated by his power
- "He overpowers me!”
- Reader fears what will happen in 2 years when Michael’s oath expires
- Bread problem needing to be xed re ects broken marriage needing to be restored
- differences in wealth and class —> lower class stand outside looking in at mayor
- Elizabeth-Jane nds Michael more appealing than Susan does
- Michael’s face darkening w/temper shows that he has not lost all of his natural passion
- Michael claims to be seeking manager reveals his tendency to blame others, or the
absence of others, when something goes wrong
Chapter 6
- Beginning of complex plot —> previous chapters = background/context
- Chapter includes many chance happenings
- Traveller (Farfrae) can’t dress Mayor directly because he is lower class + new to town
- Traveller = kind + pleasant + jovial + fortune-seeker + ambitious
- Elizabeth = observant of ongoings (eg: traveller’s note)
- Elizabeth takes on more of a motherly role than Susan (role reversal) —> takes charge of
situation because mother is overcome by Henchard’s presence + position
- Henchard adjusts appearance before going into inn —> wealth in Casterbridge is
assessed by clothes/appearance/house and judge characters accordingly
- Long description of The Three Mariners shows Hardy’s fascination in native Wessex
Chapter 7
- Susan = intimidated by inn + Henchard ∴ feels they don’t t in vs. Elizabeth does
whatever it takes to be “respectable”
- Elizabeth waiting on Scotsman shows her curiosity about him + laces himself inferior to
him
THE MAYOR OF CASTERBRIDGE THOMAS HARDY
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