Tess of the D'Urbervilles

by ThomasHardy (Author)

• Used

  Paperback
  2008

  $3.29

  An exciting new TV adaptation of Thomas Hardy's classic Tess of the D'Urbervilles has arrived on BBC 1, and this is the official tie-in edition with an exclusive introduction from the programme's producer David Snodin. A tragic tale of love, seduction and betrayal,Tess of the D'Urbervilles was named the nation's 12th favourite book in a poll for World Book Day in 2007 and 2008 marks the 80th anniversary of the death of Thomas Hardy. This new four-part series has been written by award-winning novelist and screenwriter David Nicholls. David wrote Starter for Ten, which he then adapted to film starring James McAvoy, as well as the screenplay of And When Did You Last See Your Father? starring Jim Broadbent and Colin Firth. Tess of the D'Urbervilles has a stellar cast with big-screen names and familiar faces from a number major TV dramas including Gemma Arterton (James Bond: Quantum Of Solace, St Trinian's) playing Tess, Hans Matheson (The Virgin Queen, Dr Zhivago) as her seducer Alec, Eddie Redmayne (Elizabeth: The Golden Age, The Other Boleyn Girl) as Angel and Jodie Whittaker (Venus) playing Tess's best friend Izzy. The drama also features Ruth Jones (Gavin and Stacey, Saxondale) as Tess's mother Joan, and Anna Massey (Oliver Twist, The Importance Of Being Earnest) as Mrs D'Urberville.

• Used

  Paperback
  1995

  $3.29

• Used

  Hardcover
  1993

  $3.29

• New

  Paperback
  1992

  $7.01

  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.