Doomed From The Start

Thomas Hardy (1840-1928), the influential English novelist and poet, helped forge a link between the19th and 20th century literary traditions. Hardy's work reflected his stoical pessimism and sense of tragedy in human life. Tess of the d'Urbervilles (1891) which is generally regarded as Hardy's finest novel came into conflict with Victorian morality. It is a brilliant tale of seduction, love, betrayal, and murder. In 1896, disturbed by the public uproar over the unconventional subjects of two of his greatest novels, Tess of the d'Urbervilles and Jude the Obscure, Hardy announced that he would never write fiction again. On January 11, 1928, Hardy died in Dorchester, Dorset, his ashes were cremated in Dorchester and buried with impressive ceremonies in the Poet's Corner in Westminster Abbey.The present thesis discusses the tragedy of Tess, the fallen woman, heroine in Tess of the d'Urbervilles. Tess is a woman who suffers from her fall, but still finds the strength to rise above her situation. Although Tess attempts to start a new life with Angel Clare, she can never completely escape from her past relationship with Alec d'Urbervilles. That is, she is perpetually reminded of her loss of chastity. "Far from being a passive victim, Tess embodies a fierce impulse to self determination against daunting, and ultimately insurmountable, odds" (Morgan, 89). Hardy develops a character whose inner strength allows her to conquer the established definition of the fallen woman.Chapter One is intended to analyze the social backgrounds in which Tess lives in. The story happened in the late half of the 19th century, when capitalism had already invaded the distant rural areas of England and crisis and depression began to appear. Tess is brought up in a haggler's family. Her fate is closely connected with and influenced by the social environment. Tess's tragic fate has its obvious social nature. She is the victim of social oppression, which results from the capitalist morality and religion as well as from the capitalist exploiters. Customary morality and religious ethics of Victorian Era constitute the most important factor thatdetermines Tess's inevitable tragedy. Tess is also a victim of the capitalist laws. Whoever does not observe the capitalist law and tries to challenge it will be expelled and rejected by society.Chapter Two endeavors to explore the accidents and coincidences, omens and natural environment in Tess of the d'Urbervilles, or summarized as the fatalism. In this novel, Hardy employs lots of coincidence and accidents to make Tess's tragedy unavoidable. By doing so, Hardy indicates that human destiny is determined by a kind of circumstantial force similar yet superior to any god created by man and that human beings will have no control over his own destiny. Omens and signs are also used to add to Hardy's fatalism outlook on life. Hardy's fatalism is also embodied in the form of nature, nature of the world and nature of the people. For Hardy, nature is the primary factor in life. Hardy's novels present a wildness both in nature and in human nature which is set against the codes and order of society.Chapter Three attempts to make a discussion on the weaknesses in the main characters' personality-Tess, Alec, Angel and Tess's parents. In Hardy's time, woman is defined by her adherence to submission and resistance to sexuality. Hardy redefines the role of women in his novels, focusing on sexuality. By emphasizing the physical aspect of femininity in his unorthodox representation of the sexual female, Hardy threatens the Victorian model of women. Tess, too, defined by sexuality, is characterized as a "lush bit of nature, a sexual being" (S. Morgan, 43). In contrast with this sexuality, Tess possesses certain inherent qualities, such as pride and independence, and passivity, submissiveness too. Passivity and submissiveness are the inner reasons that lead to her downfall. Alec is rich, handsome, and sensual outside; but he is a fraud and villain inside. He seems to be another element of disastrous circumstances of the novel. Ang...