Penguin Critical Studies: Tess of the D'urbervilles

by Graham Handley (Author)

• Used

  Paperback
  1991

  $3.27

  This provides a criticism of one of Hardy's most popular novels, originally written in 1891, which is frequently set for A-level and university students. Examining the centrality of Hardy's heroine, Graham Handley focuses upon the phases of Tess' existence, emphasizing at the same time the symbolism and relevance of the novel's secondary characters. His analysis of the descriptive and figurative patterns that run through the novel, his commentary on the use of dialect and dialogue and the role of the omniscient author, and most significant, his exploration of the themes that dominate Tess - the subordination of women, deception and fate, among others - all serve to celebrate the artistic complexity, intensity and humanity of this novel.

• Used

  Paperback
  1995

  $15.55

• Used

  Hardcover
  1993

  $3.27

• New

  Paperback
  1992

  $6.95

  Introduction and Notes by Michael Irwin, Professor of English Literature, University of Kent at Canterbury. Set in Hardy's Wessex, Tess is a moving novel of hypocrisy and double standards. Its challenging sub-title, A Pure Woman, infuriated critics when the book was first published in 1891, and it was condemned as immoral and pessimistic. It tells of Tess Durbeyfield, the daughter of a poor and dissipated villager, who learns that she may be descended from the ancient family of d'Urbeville. In her search for respectability her fortunes fluctuate wildly, and the story assumes the proportions of a Greek tragedy. It explores Tess's relationships with two very different men, her struggle against the social mores of the rural Victorian world which she inhabits and the hypocrisy of the age. In addressing the double standards of the time, Hardy's masterly evocation of a world which we have lost, provides one of the most compelling stories in the canon of English literature, whose appeal today defies the judgement of Hardy's contemporary critics.