Jude the Obscure, the semi-autobiographical final novel from Thomas Hardy explores notions of surprising candor; within the eponymous protagonist lies the tragic truth of failed ambitions and relationships. In a fierce exploration of the darkness of love and the intellect, this is one of the great tragic novels of English literature. Jude Fawley, an earnest boy from a rural English village, dreams of a life of academia despite his working-class background....

Henchard, a hay-tresser in England in 1886, gets drunk at a fair and sells his wife and child for five guineas. Eighteen years later, when the man has become the respected mayor of Casterbridge, his wife returns, and with her comes renewed problems and intoxication.