Steps 3-10: Commit each Great Sin

It seems that Henchard is finally nearing the end of his story. He has at this point lost his fortune to gambling, lost his lover to Donald, and lost his secret of the sale of his wife. Now Henchard is forced to work as a lowly laborer, among the people he despised so completely. So, Ladies and Gentlemen, it is time to return to the question: is Henchard a moral man. This time, however, we will look to the Bible for a bit of help.

According to Jesus’ disciples (and later, Pope Gregory I), there are certain common personality traits that equate to some of the greatest of possible sins. Proverbs warns of seven specific ones, commonly refered to as the Seven Deadly Sins. These are interpreted as envy, greed, gluttony, lust, pride, wrath, and sloth.

While Hardy may not be a particularly religious writer, the topics of morality and one’s character are concerned throughout the entire book. Therefore, to Hardy, a “sin” is much less about what will get you into Hell, and much more about how it affects you in human society.

First up to bat is envy, or the desire for something you don’t have. We have seen Henchard at his best and worst-- as both a respected mayor and a disgraced laborer. Yet, no matter his position, he seems never to be satisfied. When he is mayor, he wishes to crush Farfrae under his boot. When Susan and Elizabeth-Jane come to Casterbridge he immediately things of Miss Templeman. He never seems to be truly happy, and always wants more of what he can't have.

Next comes greed. This sin is perfectly exemplified by Henchard’s unwise gambling of his own fortune. He does this because “‘The Scotchman, who’s taking the town trade so bold into his hands, must be cut out... We two can’t live side by side" (132). Henchard wants all trade, and more importantly the money that comes with it, for himself. This causes him to bet everything he has on the coming harvest, ending in his bankrupcy.

Third on the list is gluttony, or the overconsumption of something (usually, but not always, food). After the sale of his wife, Henchard decides that he will not drink for the next twenty-one years. It just so turns out that his vow expires in this sections of the book. Henchard commits gluttony when he goes to take his first drink at a local bar, where it is stated that everyone limits themselves to half a pint and no more. Henchard on the other hand is making up for lost time, and so gets uproariously drunk.

Lust is a much harder sin to find in the modern sense in a book from the 1800s. Having romantic moments on the pages of a book at this time wasn’t exactly look kindly upon, let alone the things we would think of culminating in “lust” in the modern era. However, we do see Henchard’s covetous nature, explained perfectly by Elizabeth-Jane when she observes Miss Templeman’s two lovers. She says that the reason for their attractions “on Farfrae’s side it was the unforced passion of youth. On Henchard’s the artificially stimulated coveting of maturer age” (129). While this scene is perhaps not as saucy as our definition of lust may expect, it still bares the same idea of coveting something that is someone else's.

In the case of Henchard, pride and wrath tend to go hand in hand. One example of pride is his constant treatment of the lower class despite his past as a humble hay-trusser. This can be seen in how he shouts at Elizabeth-Jane every time she uses commoner slang (see last post for specifics). Out of Henchard's pride sprouts his wrath. Hardy seems to feel a need to include some sort of outburst from Henchard at least once every other chapter. My personal favorite occured when one of his employees showed up late to work, inspiring the words "'I don't want to hear it!' roared Henchard... 'If you're not here, stand clear. I'll mortify thy flesh for thee!" (70). Henchard's temper is something of a legend in Casterbridge; everyone knows to steer clear when he gets a certain gleam in his eye.

The last of our selected sins is sloth, or laziness. In this case, Henchard exhibits actually commendable qualities. Yet the Bible also stipulates that, in order to avoid sloth, one should use their talents to improve the lives of others. Everything that Henchard does seems to be for him and him alone. He uses his power as mayor to pressure Miss Templeman into marrying him (she refuses and picks Donald instead). He uses his wealth to get rid of his daughter and attempt to out-compete Donald.

So what does all this say about our "man of character?" Clearly, someone who embodies each of the Seven Great Sins in some way or another would not be a person we would label moral. The answer to this can, perhaps, still be found with Pope Gregory and the Bible. Each of these sins can be forgiven by the grace of God and the adoption of other traits. Gregory called these the seven virtues, each of which counteracted a sin. So while Henchard may, to us, seem like the embodiment of sin, not all is lost. His salvation is still possible, provided that he learn from his past instead of ignoring it and turn his life around. So, perhaps Hardy's man of character is not one who lives his life perfectly, but one who learns from his mistakes and turns sin into virtue.