The Mayor of Casterbridge.

The Mayor of Casterbridge (1886) by Thomas Hardy is a tragic novel that follows Michael Henchard, a man whose impulsive decision to sell his wife and child while drunk sets in motion a lifetime of regret and consequences. After vowing sobriety and rising to become the prosperous mayor of the town of Casterbridge, Henchard appears to have overcome his past, but the unexpected return of his wife years later triggers a chain of events that gradually destroys his reputation, fortune, and relationships. Set in Hardy’s fictional Wessex, the novel explores themes of fate, personal responsibility, pride, and social change, as Henchard’s volatile temperament and rivalry with the capable Donald Farfrae ultimately lead to his tragic downfall and isolation.