The Mayor of Casterbridge characters

Appears from the start

A young hay-trusser whose pride, violent temper, and heavy drinking have made him restless and unreliable. At Weydon-Priors, after too much rum-laced furmity, he publicly offers his wife and infant daughter for sale. When he sobers, he is appalled by what he has done and swears not to drink alcohol for twenty-one years.

Appears from the start

Henchard's quiet, long-suffering wife, travelling with him and their baby in search of work. She takes his drunken sale seriously and leaves with the sailor who has bid for her, believing the transaction may bind her as firmly as a marriage.

Appears from the start

A sailor who encounters the Henchards at Weydon-Priors. Disgusted by Michael's treatment of Susan but persuaded that the offer is genuine, he pays the stated price and takes Susan and the child away with him.

First appears in chapter 2

The young woman Susan has raised as her daughter. Thoughtful, observant, and eager to improve her speech and education, she accompanies Susan to Casterbridge while believing Newson to have been her father.

Appears from the start

The old seller of furmity at the Weydon-Priors fair. She secretly adds alcohol to some customers' bowls and presides over the tent in which Henchard makes his disastrous bargain.

First appears in chapter 3

A young Scottish corn merchant passing through Casterbridge on his way to America. He is practical, inventive, and personable, and sends the mayor a method for improving damaged grain without initially seeking any reward.

First appears in chapter 5

A journeyman in the corn trade who arrives in Casterbridge expecting Henchard to employ him. He finds that the position has instead gone to Farfrae and leaves resentful after Henchard gives him only a small payment for his trouble.

First appears in chapter 4

The landlady of the Three Mariners, the modest inn where Susan and Elizabeth-Jane stay on reaching Casterbridge. She is friendly to the newcomers and employs Elizabeth-Jane while their circumstances remain uncertain.

First appears in chapter 11

One of Henchard's workmen, habitually late to work and humiliated by his employer for it. His poverty and dependence leave him little power against Henchard's harsh discipline.

Also known as Lucetta Le Sueur

First appears in chapter 17

A wealthy young widow newly settled at High-Place Hall. As Lucetta Le Sueur she knew Henchard in Jersey during Susan's absence, and she now hopes he will quietly honour his old promise to marry her. She hires Elizabeth-Jane as a companion before realizing how closely the young woman is connected to him.