Honey, I Sold the Kid (And You): An Introduction to Characters
Michael Henchard (also known as the Mayor of Casterbridge)
Michael Henchard is a pretty ordinary guy. He's a hay trusser, which means he ties hay into bundles for a living. He's described as swarthy and fine figured, and has a wife named Susan and a newborn daughter named Elizabeth-Jane. He's also a bit of a drunkard, which leads him into a little bit of trouble. You see, he sells his wife.
It's not really a big deal to him, in the moment, because Susan has been annoying him, and this sailor offers him 5 guineas, which translates to about 700 current US dollars. The going price for mail order brides these days is $1,000 to $15,000 (according to BroBible.com). Apparently, the sailor got a pretty good deal.
The next morning, Michael deeply regrets this decision and swears off drinking for the next twenty-one years. Surprisingly, he's been pretty successful in this so far! We catch up with him nineteen years later, and he's still sober and going strong. In fact, he is now the mayor of his town, Casterbridge, and also runs a hay, corn, and wheat business on the side. Right now, he seems like an okay guy (if you can forgive him for selling his wife and child, for which I think he is remorseful).
Susan Henchard (now Newson)
It sucks to be sold by your husband, but Susan doesn't really complain. Apparently she and Michael don't get along very well, and she's tired of his shenanigans. I'm not sure if she actually expected him to go through with the deal, but when he does, she doesn't hesitate to go with the sailor, Richard Newson, and takes her daughter with her.
They end up in Canada, but soon come back to England, and Richard eventually dies at sea. It wasn't until many many years into this union that Susan even began to doubt whether the fact that this guy bought her actually means he has any right to control her. For the most part, she just figured it was true, and went along with it. You might hope she would then have some sort of feminist awakening, but instead she takes her daughter and tries to find Michael. Though this might not be the choice a twenty-first century feminist would want her to make, I do think that it is still a redeemable decision, because she does it for the sake of her daughter, for she thinks that perhaps Michael will give them some money to live off of.
He ends up doing much more than that, though, deciding to take her back as his wife. Again, she agrees, but it seems like she is only doing it because she loves her daughter so much and she thinks it will save her reputation. Selflessness only goes so far to make a character likable, though; like Stacy and Clinton always say, you have to take some time to care for yourself. Despite Susan's flaws, I am looking forward to see what tragedies will befall her character next, and how she will deal with them.
Elizabeth-Jane Henchard-Newson
Elizabeth, the daughter of Susan and Michael, is kept completely in the dark by her mother, and is raised under the belief that Richard Newson, the sailor, is her father. After his death, Susan tells her daughter that they're looking for a distant relation by marriage who may be able to help them financially. Elizabeth doesn't question this, despite the fact that the connection between her mother and the mayor of Casterbridge seems far deeper than that of very distant relatives. I guess it's fortunate that Susan claimed the relation was only through marriage; even so, from Elizabeth's perspective, things must be verging on the level of my cousin Kenneth's marriages*.
Though Elizabeth might come off as a bit daft for not suspecting anything more is going on between her mother and Michael Henchard, I do think that she is a pretty good character. Just like her mother, Elizabeth is very selfless, always willing to do something to help her mother, including serving in the kitchen of the inn they're staying in in order to lessen the price of their stay, no matter what it means for her reputation. Elizabeth also seems to be rather absorbed by Donald Farfrae, a charming Scottsman who arrived in town around the same time she and her mother did.
Donald Farfrae
Donald is a Scottish fellow who dreams big. He passes through Casterbridge by chance, and happens to hear of the Mayor's current problems with the quality of his wheat. Donald happens to have a solution to the mayor's problem, and as a result, the mayor offers him a job. Donald, however, is set upon seeing the "warrld" and wishes to travel to America.
Despite his intentions to leave, everyone in town takes an immediate liking to Donald,
especially when he serenades the townsfolk with a few touching ditties at the local inn. Even with all his desires to see the world; to travel to America and be a successful businessman; Donald seems very nostalgic for his time in Scotland. Overall, the Scottsman seems like a nice enough individual, and Henchard seems agree, pestering the man until he finally convinces him to stay on as the overseer of some of his crops. I am very much looking forward to seeing how Donald's relationship with Henchard develops, and how he interacts with the other main characters in the novel.
*My mom's cousin Kenneth married a woman, and when she died, he married her daughter (his step-daughter).
Michael Henchard is a pretty ordinary guy. He's a hay trusser, which means he ties hay into bundles for a living. He's described as swarthy and fine figured, and has a wife named Susan and a newborn daughter named Elizabeth-Jane. He's also a bit of a drunkard, which leads him into a little bit of trouble. You see, he sells his wife.
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| The reader when Henchard sells his wife |
The next morning, Michael deeply regrets this decision and swears off drinking for the next twenty-one years. Surprisingly, he's been pretty successful in this so far! We catch up with him nineteen years later, and he's still sober and going strong. In fact, he is now the mayor of his town, Casterbridge, and also runs a hay, corn, and wheat business on the side. Right now, he seems like an okay guy (if you can forgive him for selling his wife and child, for which I think he is remorseful).
Susan Henchard (now Newson)
It sucks to be sold by your husband, but Susan doesn't really complain. Apparently she and Michael don't get along very well, and she's tired of his shenanigans. I'm not sure if she actually expected him to go through with the deal, but when he does, she doesn't hesitate to go with the sailor, Richard Newson, and takes her daughter with her.
They end up in Canada, but soon come back to England, and Richard eventually dies at sea. It wasn't until many many years into this union that Susan even began to doubt whether the fact that this guy bought her actually means he has any right to control her. For the most part, she just figured it was true, and went along with it. You might hope she would then have some sort of feminist awakening, but instead she takes her daughter and tries to find Michael. Though this might not be the choice a twenty-first century feminist would want her to make, I do think that it is still a redeemable decision, because she does it for the sake of her daughter, for she thinks that perhaps Michael will give them some money to live off of.
He ends up doing much more than that, though, deciding to take her back as his wife. Again, she agrees, but it seems like she is only doing it because she loves her daughter so much and she thinks it will save her reputation. Selflessness only goes so far to make a character likable, though; like Stacy and Clinton always say, you have to take some time to care for yourself. Despite Susan's flaws, I am looking forward to see what tragedies will befall her character next, and how she will deal with them.
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| I think Susan could use some help from Stacy and Clinton; maybe not on her fashion, but on her life!! |
Elizabeth-Jane Henchard-Newson
Elizabeth, the daughter of Susan and Michael, is kept completely in the dark by her mother, and is raised under the belief that Richard Newson, the sailor, is her father. After his death, Susan tells her daughter that they're looking for a distant relation by marriage who may be able to help them financially. Elizabeth doesn't question this, despite the fact that the connection between her mother and the mayor of Casterbridge seems far deeper than that of very distant relatives. I guess it's fortunate that Susan claimed the relation was only through marriage; even so, from Elizabeth's perspective, things must be verging on the level of my cousin Kenneth's marriages*.
Though Elizabeth might come off as a bit daft for not suspecting anything more is going on between her mother and Michael Henchard, I do think that she is a pretty good character. Just like her mother, Elizabeth is very selfless, always willing to do something to help her mother, including serving in the kitchen of the inn they're staying in in order to lessen the price of their stay, no matter what it means for her reputation. Elizabeth also seems to be rather absorbed by Donald Farfrae, a charming Scottsman who arrived in town around the same time she and her mother did.
Donald Farfrae
Donald is a Scottish fellow who dreams big. He passes through Casterbridge by chance, and happens to hear of the Mayor's current problems with the quality of his wheat. Donald happens to have a solution to the mayor's problem, and as a result, the mayor offers him a job. Donald, however, is set upon seeing the "warrld" and wishes to travel to America.
Despite his intentions to leave, everyone in town takes an immediate liking to Donald,
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| Donald, before Hencahrd convinces him to stay |
*My mom's cousin Kenneth married a woman, and when she died, he married her daughter (his step-daughter).
Fiona, I like the style of your blog response as it reflects some of your own personal interests. You've done a nice job describing the characters, but I wonder if you see any archetypes or other symbolic elements in the characters you've introduced so far?
ReplyDeleteThanks! I do think that Henchard is beginning to show himself as an archetype that I have seen variations of in many other texts. He's a man who attempts to present a respectable and untroubled facade, but deep down is troubled by guilt and his past, much like the protagonists of such novels as Les Miserables or even The Great Gatsby. I'm looking forward to seeing if Henchard's story will end positively like Jean Valjean's, or in tragedy like Gatsby's. I guess that will depend on how he deals with the problems life (and Thomas Hardy) will continue to lay in front of him....
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