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Chapter 12
Explanation and Analysis—Farfrae and Henchard:
Hardy uses the fastidiousness, intellectualism, and coolness of the young Donald Farfrae as a foil for the character of the warm, rash, and ebullient Mr. Henchard. For instance, in Chapter 12, after watching Farfrae attempt to organize the accounts of his corn business, Henchard asks him to come to dinner with him. Farfrae would have preferred to keep working but instead decides to go with him:
Donald had wished to get to his lodgings; but he already saw that his friend and employer was a man who knew no moderation in his requests and impulses, and he yielded gracefully. He liked Henchard’s warmth, even if it inconvenienced him; the great difference in their characters adding to the liking.
The contrast in Henchard and Farfrae's personalities make the differing aspects of their respective demeanors seem more extreme. Michael Henchard is already headstrong, "warm," emotionally intense, and disorganized, but his proximity to Farfrae makes him seem cartoonishly so. Other characters also directly compare them, observing that, in comparison to Henchard, Farfrae is "fair, fresh and slenderly handsome." Beyond the physical, Farfrae's conservative choices, "thrift," and withdrawn demeanor make the fact that Henchard "knows no moderation in his requests and impulses" very evident.
Henchard represents the old-world order, and Farfrae represents the new intellectual turn of the mid 1800s. The characters thus also spotlight the gap between these two "eras" in British history. Because Henchard and Farfrae are so diametrically opposed in personality, their opposition in action and in their approach to situations seems a natural development. Farfrae's scientific inclinations, evidence-based approach to life, and modern views allow him to keep a "cool" head and act rationally. He is able to grow and develop and even fix the mistakes of the past, as his ability to restore the wheat of Casterbridge shows. Henchard's impulsive responses and old-fashioned ideals, on the other hand, keep him locked in grudges and lead him to repeat past mistakes.
Related Themes:
