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The Mayor of Casterbridge Chapter 33 Summary

  • Henchard is at the King of Prussia Inn, drinking beer with some of the townspeople.
  • Most of the others have just come from church, so they're not drinking much.
  • Some members of the church choir are there, and Henchard, who loves music, asks them to sing him a song.
  • They feel sorry for him, so they agree.
  • He chooses a Psalm that's all about revenge and making your enemy totally miserable.
  • They're kind of uncomfortable singing it, but he finally bullies them into it.
  • Once they're done, he tells them it was about Farfrae, and they're all really creeped out.
  • Then Elizabeth-Jane arrives and persuades him to come home.
  • Elizabeth-Jane is worried that Henchard will try to hurt Farfrae in some way and wonders whether she should try to warn him.
  • Lucetta, meanwhile, doesn't realize that Farfrae has hired Henchard. Farfrae doesn't know about her past with Henchard, so why should he tell her?
  • Lucetta accidentally runs into Henchard in the warehouse one day, and he's very sarcastic to her.
  • She sends him a note later telling him not to treat her like that again.
  • Elizabeth-Jane tries to keep Henchard from drinking too much by bringing him tea at five o'clock every day after work.
  • One day she comes in with the tea and sees Henchard talking to Farfrae near the edge of a hay loft.
  • Farfrae doesn't see that Henchard is clearly thinking of pushing him off.
  • He doesn't, and probably wouldn't have, but it makes Elizabeth-Jane awfully uncomfortable.
  • She resolves to warn Farfrae that Henchard might be planning something.