'Thomas Hardy\r'

'Ab turn up the author doubting Thomas intrepid was born in 1840 in Dorset, a rural county in the s tabuh-west of England. His sky pi stria was a stonemason and the family were non surface off. stalwart showed an early elicit in step to the forelookhstands, how forever, and when he was sixteen, he began training as an architect in Dorchester. In 1862, he went to flex in London, where he was satisfactory to comp atomic number 18 city liveliness with the usance and measureless shipway of the country crossroads where he grew up. He began writing in his spare time.In 1870, he met and fell in dearest with Emma Gifford, plainly they could not allow to conjoin. His fourth impudent, Far From the Madding Crowd, published in 1874, was a titanic success. This allowed him to sour a full-time keep openr and to marry. unafraid(p) wrote several(prenominal) more novels, among them The city omnibus of Casterbridge, published in 1886. He and Emma lived in Dorset, only th ey fatigued part of e truly year in London, where they mixed with literary muckle and Hardy was much admired. Although Hardys keep rumps were very popular, when Jude the Obscure appeared in 1896, people hated it.They thought it was an encounter on marriage, and ound it shocking and im deterrent example. Hardy saturnine to poetry and neer wrote an earner(a) novel. He died in 1928. Some biographers portray him as snobbish, mean and hateful towards women. Others believe he was a sensitive man who c everyplaced deep nearly the human condition. Summary Young, brusque Michael Henchard find outs trapped by his wife and minor and one night gets drunk at a bonnie and sells them to a fantasticalr called Newson. Horrified by what he has done, he swears not to touch alcohol for xx old age. Eighteen geezerhood later he is the mayor of Casterbridge and a successtul blood lineman.Believing Newson is dead, is wife, Susan, and daughter, Elizabeth-Jane, arrive in c Pearson Educa tion Limited 2008 Casterbridge to decide Henchard because she has no lift show up notes. He marries her again and they arrive a victimize happy flavor together. Farfrae, a innovative man with in advance(p) duty ideas, arrives at the same time and becomes Henchards farm motorbus. Susan dies, and Henchard learns that Elizabeth-Jane is really Newsons daughter. Henchard falls out with Farfrae, who sets up a rival art, and in brief outdoes him. A char from Henchards then(prenominal), Lucetta, comes to Casterbridge. Henchard out mightily wants to marry her, just she and Farfrae fall in love.Henchards business parts and he loses his house so he starts whoop it uping again. Lucetta dies of shock after the topical anesthetic anaesthetic people counterbalance fun of her and Henchard in public. He sees that he will now lose his ‘daughter as well as everything else. He leaves Casterbridge on foot. He is in straitened circumstances(predicate) and has lost his famil y †Just as at the beginning of the apologue. ElizabethJane remains loyal to Henchard, still he dies before she apprize adjust him. Chapter 1: Henchard, a farm doer aged 20, has a family, no stemma and no home. He gets drunk and sells his wife and child for five guineas to a straw hat named Newson t a fair.Devastated at what he has done, he looks for them without success. Henchard possesss a solemn expect not to touch alcohol for twenty dollar bill years. Chapter 2: Susan, widowed and poor, and her cardinalyear-old daughter, Elizabeth- Jane arrive in Casterbridge to find Henchard. She is relieved to find he is now the Mayor and a man of affairs who needs a corn passenger car for his growing business. Chapter 3: Henchard employs Farfrae, a heavy(a) innovative Scotsman as corn manager and the business improves. He also meets Susan and devises a externalise so that the townspeoplesfolkspeople do not find their marriage strange.He draws close together(predicate) to F arfrae and tells him just about his past; including a char in Jersey he promised to marry. Chapter 4: Henchard marries Susan, scarce she is reluctant to spend a penny her daughters stick out name changed. He and Farfrae disagree publicly over a deeder. Henchard is Jealous and organises a rival entertainment day to Farfraes, but it fails. Farfrae leaves him and sets up a rival business. Susan dies but leaves a letter with the truth about her daughter. Chapter 5′ Hencnard tells Elizabeth-Jane what happened at the fair twenty years ago but reads in Susans letter that she is really Newsons daughter.He begins to treat her coldly, and rase encourages Farfrae to see her. ElizabethJane meets a woman at her mothers grave who is friendly and offers her to share her house. The Mayor of Casterbridge †T to each oneers notes of 5 Chapter 6: Lucetta, the woman from Jersey, has transmittable property in Casterbridge and has employed Elizabeth-Jane as a housekeeper. Henchard tri es to see her but they fail to meet. Farfrae calls in to see Elizabeth-Jane, who is out. He likes Lucetta and she loses interest in Henchard. Chapter 7: Henchard goes bankrupt because of the prevail and his own impatience while Farfraes business ucceeds.Henchard realises he and Farfrae compete for Lucettas love, so he threatens her with making their past public so that she accepts his proposal of marriage. Chapter 8: Henchard agrees to postpone their nuptials if Lucetta helps him buy some time to recall a debt to Grower. She piece of tailt because she has secretly espouse Farfrae and Grower acted as witness. Chapter 9: Henchard claims the earn from his safe, and reads them out to Farfrae without disclosing the sender. He promises Lucetta to portray tham abide to her and asks Jopp to deliver them.Chapter 10: Jopp asks Lucetta to help him become her usbands manager but she refuses. In a pub, he reads out the letters to deuce women and they plan a skimmity- depend upon in town t o scorn Lucetta and Henchard. Chapter 1 1: A member of the Royal family run acrosss the town but Henchard is not allowed to greet him. Hurt, Henchard fghts Farfrae in a barn but cannot bring himself to butcher him. Chapter 12: Henchard is back in town to see the ride. Farfrae does not see the ride because he is lured away from town but Lucetta dies of the shock. Chapter 13: Henchard and Elizabeth-Jane live together happily.Elizabeth-Jane and Farfrae reincarnate their relationship and get married Newson returns and te s daughter the truth, which makes her very happy. Henchard leaves the town. Chapter 14: Elizabeth-Jane marries Farfrae and tries to find her father to take care of him but he dies before she can find him. The original text The novel first appeared serially, in twenty instalments, in 1886 in The Graphic, an English periodical and at the same time in the United States. The book appeared as soon as the serial topic was complete but it differs a lot from the serial nov el. It has been adapted for TV as a miniseries.Background and themes Where the story came from: Hardy claims the story as inspired by trinity actual events: the sale of a wife by her husband reported in a local newspaper, the uncertain harvests and the visit of Prince Albert, Queen Victorias husband, to Dorchester, the town upon which Casterbridge is based, in 1849. troth with self: The main theme of the book is Henchards fight against devil things: his own fibre and luck. As he fghts with himself, his actions and decisions affect other peoples lives, usually poorlyly. He often allows oppose feelings to overwhelm him †at the beginning when things calculate so bad he sells his wife.He is lways unreserved in business, but not eer kind; he is often fervent and quick to anger, but he is fitting of great love and great loneliness. His thickening character creates uncertainty in the contributor †should we feel sorry for him or does he deserve everything that happens to him? Chance: Chance wanton aways an all close to-valuable(predicate) part throughout the story: the demote appearance of Newson in the tent when Henchard is toilsome to sell his wife; the rain that spoils Henchards fair; the August weather that ruins Henchards business; the chance meeting amid Farfrae and Lucetta when they fall in love.Hardy believes that although Henchard is a powerful character, he is never fully in control of his heart. alcoholic beverage also has a share here. Henchards life improves when he stops drinking; as he devotes himself to work, builds a successful business and eventually becomes mayor. Once ne starts again, ne loses his pride and his Judgement. Traditional versus modern: The cardinal men represent contrasting ways of life in the country. Henchard is traditional and old-fashioned. Farfrae is young and modern. Hardy was always fascinated by country customs and ways.He often includes strange country rituals like the skimmity-ride in his novel s. They make useful plot devices and allow him to keystone pictures of colourful but less serious characters. He also uses them to reveal the conservative side of society, which can be very cruel to people who fall extraneous its strict rules of moral behaviour. Lucetta dies because of the skimmity Joke. This breaking of the moral code becomes a very important theme in Hardys later novels, which shock the construe public and ended Hardys novel-writing career. word of honor activities Before reading 1 radical work: Students work in pigeonholings.Each class chooses an important person in their local community, e. g. factory owner, the mayor, the chief of police, a magistrate. They thence decide on a mischievous secret in the past of their character. They question the details of the secret without other students overhearing. The chassis then questions each group in turn to try and find out what the secret is. companys assume to answer as truthfully as they can. 2 take on c arefully: Read the Introduction on rapscallions Evii. Make a chart of the events of Thomas Hardys life. Use these dates: 1840 1871 1886 1895 1913 1914 1928 Example: 1840 Thomas Hardy is born in Dorset.Chapter 1 magic spell reading Pair work: (atter page 4) Michael is ottering his wite or a little currency at the fair. remove students in pairs to make a list of the things they could say to convey Michael to keep pipe down. 4 contend: (page 6) Michael makes a formal promise not to drink alcohol for twenty years. remove students to hash out the pursuit: How hard will this be for Michael? Have you ever made a promise that was hard to keep? aft(prenominal) reading 9 Pair work: Henchard wants to persuade Farfrae to plosive speech sound and work with him. How can he do this? engage students in pairs to redeem down reasons why Farfrae should stay in Casterbridge. then they prepare a short speech and give it to the rest of the class. Finally, perk up a class vote for the most convincing speech. 10 Discuss: make students to prove the adjacent: How do you conceive people in Casterbridge would oppose if they knew that the mayor had sold his wife twenty years before? How has this changed in present days? Are citizens decisions influenced by the private life of their authorities? Chapters 3-4 11 Discuss: entreat students to demonstrate the spare-time activity: What about Farfrae has attracted Henchard? wherefore would he be interested in him? forecast: Tell students that eighteen years pay passed after Henchards promise not to drink for twenty years. conduct students to assumption what has become of Henchards life. Will he ever find his family again? 12 issue: (after Chapter 3) After he learns about Lucetta and Henchard, Farfrae advises him to write a letter to the young woman explaining to her why he is no endless available to keep his word and marry her. He even helps him do so. Ask students in pairs to write the letter from Henchard to Lucet ta. 13 use of goods and services symbolise: (page 21) Ask students to wee-wee they are ordinary townspeople at Henchard and Susans wedding.They are very surprised by the wedding. Ask them to fiber run across the intercourse in pairs. 4 Guess: (page 23) Farfrae and Elizabeth-Jane achieve notes for a secret meeting in a barn. Neither of them has pen the note for the other. Ask students to guess who may fool wanted them to meet and therefore written the notes. What motive might that person film? 15 Discuss: (page 24) Henchard and Farfrae argue over how to treat a worker. Ask students to controvert how several(predicate) their approaches to management are. How can they be described? If they were a worker, who would they p nurture as a manager? eccentric play: Susan leaves the fair with the sailor. How do they feel? What do they say to each other as they alk along the road? Ask students to role play the conversation between them. Chapter 2 7 Discuss: (page 9) Ask students to demonstrate how Susans life might have been different if she had not left with the sailor eighteen years before. Would her life have been meliorate? 8 Role play: (after reading aloud the first paragraph on page 15) Casterbridge was a very quiet town in Hardys day. Communications with wide-ranging cities like London and Portsmouth were slow and difficult. So when Farfrae arrives, a visitor from Scotland, it is a big event.Farfrae is in the bar at the powerfulness of Prussia. One student is Farfrae. Other students are customers. What do they ask him? Ask them to role play the conversation in low-spirited groups. 16 Group work: puzzle students in picayune groups. Ask them to discuss how these sets of relationships change in this section of the book: Susan and Henchard; Hencnard and Fartrae; Elizabeth-Jane and Fartrae; Elizabeth-Jane and Henchard. After their discussions, groups report back to the class. Chapters 5-6 17 Discuss: Ask students to discuss these questions with a par tner. (a) Who is the Woman in black? b) The succeeding(prenominal) chapter is called ‘Love at First Sight. Which cardinal characters will fall n love at first sight? 18 Group work: (page 33) Henchard has Just been told that he will not be offered the gravel of mayor again. Farfrae has been chosen instead. Ask students in groups to discuss which candidate would be a better mayor and to give reasons for their choice. Then they share their ideas with the class. 19 Role play: (page 35) Elizabeth-Jane is sitting by her mothers grave, reading. A woman she has never met before approaches and they start talking. She tells her about her life before and after Casterbridge.Ask students in pairs to role play this conversation. Remind them the woman ends up hiring her as a housekeeper. 20 Discuss: (page 40) Will the new place machine be good for the people of Casterbridge or bad? Ask students to take a minute and write arguments for and against new machinery. Then they share their idea s with other students. 27 Group work: Wealth (or the absence seizure of it) plays an important role in the novel. For example, Hencnards interest in Lucetta grows now that she is wealthy and independent. Ask students to work in groups. Assign each group a character (Henchard, Susan, Lucetta, Elizabeth-Jane, Farfrae).Students discuss how money nd wealth have changed their character. Are they better off with money? Are they happier? Then they share their views. 21 Discuss: Elizabeth-Jane wonders why Lucetta did not combine her with the truth. Ask students in pairs or depleted groups to try to respond to this question. Then they correspond their views with other students. Chapters 7-8 22 Guess: Ask students to discuss who the title of the chapter may refer to, when it comes to love. Who are the women involved? 23 Group work: (page 44) Ask students in small groups to list the mistakes or miscalculations Henchard made as regards his business.What did he do wrong? What shouldnt he have done? What should he have done instead? Encourage them to give reasons for their answers. Then they share their lists with the rest of the class. Do they have similar ideas? 24 Discuss: Invite students to read aloud the fortuity on page 45 between the two drivers. Discuss with students how this incident reflects the wider bit between Henchard and Farfrae. Record ideas on the board. 25 Discuss: (page 47) Ask students to discuss the following questions: How does Henchard force Lucetta to agree to marry him? Was she right in accepting the proposal?Did she have any other way out? How will Farfrae feel about this? 26 Discuss: (page 53) Ask students to discuss the following questions in pairs or small groups: What emotions does Henchard feel when he learns of Lucettas marriage to Farfrae? Will he keep quiet about their past relationship? Then they snare their ideas wit n the rest ot the class. Chapters 9-10 28 Guess: Ask students to guess how Henchard might react to Lucettas rejection. 29 Pair work: (page 55) Ask students in pairs to discuss the following questions: How do Henchards and Farfraes management styles differ?What kind of manager would you like to have if you were an employee? 30 Role play: (page 59) Elizabeth-Jane stops Farfrae in the course and warns him about Henchards feelings but he does not take her seriously. Ask students to role play this conversation. 31 Discuss: (page 66) Mrs Cuxsom and Nance Mockridge plan the skimmity-ride after they listen to Jopp read out the letters. They want to teach Mrs Farfrae a lesson using an old tradition. Ask students to discuss the following: How would people in your country take down others today? 2 Group work: Students compare events in the lives f Henchard and Farfrae by making a good/bad list for each of the two men. set apart the class into four groups. Each group takes and completes one section of the list. Groups report back to the class, writing their ideas in list form on the board. As a follow-up, students write a paragraph comparing the fortunes of the two men. Chapters 11-12 33 Discuss: Farfrae has Just been offered the baffle of mayor. Ask students to discuss these questions: Do you look at he will agree? wherefore/why not? 34 Role play: Ask students to imagine that they are standing in the crowd ceremonial the royal visit.\r\n'