Mayor of Casterbridge

Mayor of Casterbridge by Thomas Hardy traces the life of Michael Henchard, a man whose reckless past returns to ruin the authority he builds for himself. After selling his wife and child in a moment of drunken desperation, Henchard spends years trying to remake his life, only to be undone by pride, jealousy, and bad judgment.

Hardy sets the story in a vivid provincial world where market trade, weather, and reputation all shape fate. The novel's force comes from watching a single character repeatedly turn strength into self-destruction while the town records every fall with unforgiving clarity. Its harsh beauty lies in how fully Henchard's character becomes the instrument of his own undoing. Henchard's public standing and private shame remain locked together throughout.