Chapter 25

• Who does Angel intend to marry?

  A dairymaid
• What does Angel's father discuss with him?

  Their missionary ambitions for Angel
• How does Angel feel about his father's religious ideals?

  He feels disconnected from them
• What does Angel's ambivalence reveal about his character?

  His tension between rural simplicity and urban upbringing
• What does Hardy critique through Angel's ambivalence?

  The romanticised return to nature
• What does Angel notice about Tess's hands?

  They were white and delicate, but for working
• What does Angel's focus on Tess's physical attributes indicate?

  His idealisation of her
• What does Hardy suggest about Angel's perception of Tess?

  It is superficial and foreshadows consequences
• What was the context of the Victorian era in relation to Romantic ideals?

  • Revival of Romantic ideals
  • Hardy questions their sustainability
  • Confronted with complex realities