Henchard Of Mayor Of Casterbridge Vs. Macbeth

Michael Henchard followed a strict code of honor. No matter what he did, for good or evil, he did it in an honorable fashion. When his business began to fail and he hired Jopp as his assistant, he instructed Jopp to ruin Farfrae. Jopp inquired as to which method he should use to ruin Farfrae—illegal or legal. To this Henchard answered, “By fair competition I mean of course.” (Page 179) Similarly, when Henchard asked Farfrae for a duel, Henchard tied his hand to his side to make the fight even, an indication of his honor.

In contrast, Macbeth acted with honor when no more efficient choice appeared. He killed Duncan in complete secrecy. He accomplished this by leaving the daggers in the hands of the drugged guards. When he killed Banquo, he chose not to give him an honorable death on a level playing field but rather killed him cl

Henchard felt remorse for what he had done and corrected the evil that had caused him to sell his wife. Another example of how Henchard acted upon his remorse to rectify his wrongs; occurred following the skimmity ride. The sight of the skimmity ride plagued Lucetta with an epileptic seizure that was life threatening. When Henchard found out that Lucetta was in danger and needed Farfrae, he rushed to get Farfrae and bring him home. Henchard felt remorse over the fact that the skimmity ride had come from the love letters she had sent him. He felt an obligation to retrieve Farfrae and end her suffering.

andestinely at the hands hired murderers. The witches informed him, “Beware of Macduff;” (IV, i) he heeded this warning by slaughtering Macduff’s family, but did not meet openly with Macduff until their final battle. However, during the final battle between the forces of Macbeth and those of Malcolm, sensing his inevitable defeat, Macbeth felt he had no other choice but to fight to the last straw. In doing so, Macbeth retained his honor, for if he did surrender, he would become the laughingstock of Scotland. As he left for the field outside Dunsinane to fight the battle, Macbeth said, “They have tied me to a stake. I cannot fly, but bear-like I must fight the course.” (Macbeth V, vii)

Both Henchard and Macbeth met their ends through similar weaknesses. Both men allowed supernatural guidance to influence their decisions in a negative way. Macbeth followed the words of the witches while Henchard listened to Mr. Fall, the forecaster. Macbeth listened to the witches when they said, “All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king here after!” (I, iii) Their words influenced Macbeth to kill Duncan and unrightfully seize the crown. About the prophecy Macbeth said “If chance would have me king, chance would crown me king without my stir.” (II, iii) If Macbeth had allowed fate to run its course, the crown may have come to him rightfully. Instead, he actuated the prophecy and eventually met his end through Duncan’s rightful heirs.

Every guilty person’s psyche has a feeling of remorse. However, how that

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