The Mayor of Casterbridge (Heritage Press edition), illustrated by Agnes Miller Parker, stands as one of the most visually arresting interpretations of Thomas Hardy’s 1886 tragedy of pride and redemption. This Heritage Press production showcases Parker’s masterful wood engravings—her stark, angular lines mirroring the unforgiving landscape of Wessex and the psychological rigidity of Michael Henchard himself.
The Scottish artist’s illustrations reduce Hardy’s complex characters to essential forms: Henchard’s hulking silhouette dominates the page like a monolith, while the rival Farfrae appears as a collection of precise, mechanical lines, visually underscoring their clash between tradition and modernity. Parker’s 12 full-page engravings—particularly the haunting depiction of the “furmity woman” reappearing at the fair—elevate the novel’s Greek tragedy elements through her modernist style.
