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Censored on its release in 1841, Tess of the d'Urbervilles challenged attitudes with its depiction of a woman forced into a chain of painful circumstances by her social status and by the often cruel treatment of friends, family and the men who loved her.
At once a novel of character and a sharply critical novel of society and class, Tess of the d'Urbervilles follows its heroine through a social and emotional gauntlet. The memory of abuse and the stigma of a pregnancy out of wedlock haunt Tess as she struggles with the stern strictures of society, the uncharitable attitudes of those around her and, most formidable of all, her own desires. A steady stream of critical re-interpretations of Tess has only lent strength to her standing as one of the most memorable characters in Victorian fiction. Troubling, intense and possessing a uniquely emotional brand of narrative suspense, the novel has come to be seen as not simply a classic but as Thomas Hardy's masterpiece.
With an eye-catching new cover, and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Tess of the d'Urbervilles is both modern and readable.
About the author
"Thomas Hardy OM (2 June 1840 - 11 January 1928) was an English novelist and poet. A Victorian realist in the tradition of George Eliot, he was influenced both in his novels and in his poetry by Romanticism, including the poetry of William Wordsworth. He was highly critical of much in Victorian society, especially on the declining status of rural people in Britain, such as those from his native South West England.While Hardy wrote poetry throughout his life and regarded himself primarily as a poet, his first collection was not published until 1898. Initially, he gained fame as the author of novels such as Far from the Madding Crowd (1874), The Mayor of Casterbridge (1886), Tess of the d'Urbervilles (1891), and Jude the Obscure (1895)."
Summary
Censored on its release in 1841, Tess of the d’Urbervilles challenged attitudes with its depiction of a woman forced into a chain of painful circumstances by her social status and by the often cruel treatment of friends, family and the men who loved her.
At once a novel of character and a sharply critical novel of society and class, Tess of the d’Urbervilles follows its heroine through a social and emotional gauntlet. The memory of abuse and the stigma of a pregnancy out of wedlock haunt Tess as she struggles with the stern strictures of society, the uncharitable attitudes of those around her and, most formidable of all, her own desires. A steady stream of critical re-interpretations of Tess has only lent strength to her standing as one of the most memorable characters in Victorian fiction. Troubling, intense and possessing a uniquely emotional brand of narrative suspense, the novel has come to be seen as not simply a classic but as Thomas Hardy’s masterpiece.
With an eye-catching new cover, and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Tess of the d’Urbervilles is both modern and readable.
