In Hardy’s novel chance and coincidence play very vital and dominating role in determining the destiny of the character. In his novel The Mayor of Casterbridge too, there are a series of chances and coincidences throughout the whole plot structure. He is guided by his fate in every step ofContinue Reading
Thomas Hardy’s The Mayor of Casterbridge brings to light the harsh reality of Victorian society’s treatment of women. This aspect of the novel may be illustrated by discussing the main female characters of the novel, namely Susan Henchard, Lucetta Templeman, and Elizabeth-Jane Newson. Henchard’s auctioning off his wife to theContinue Reading
In The Mayor of Casterbridge there are two very strong forces working – sometimes together, sometimes regardless of each other. On the one hand this is predestination, defined by the characters own feature which are peculiar to each character; on the other hand this is chance which is external forContinue Reading
Is Henchard a tragic character? Why or why not? Does he possess a tragic flaw that leads to his downfall? If so, what is it? In Thomas Hardy’s novel, The Mayor of Casterbridge, the main protagonist, Michael Henchard displays the typical traits of a tragic hero. He is presented with certain admirable qualitiesContinue Reading
Mayor of Casterbridge is a tragedy of the most moving type. It fulfills the Aristotelian requirement of the depiction of the downfall and death of the hero because of some tragic flaw in his character. It also conforms to the pattern of the Greek classical tragedy in the cruel workingsContinue Reading
