Tess

    Cards (17)

    • Novel
      A long prose narrative that relates human experiences
    • The British novel originated in the eighteenth century
    • The nineteenth century has been described as 'the age of the novel'
    • Tess of the D'Urbervilles
      • Contains elements of the pastoral genre - a mode of literature that presents man and nature as living harmoniously
      • Can be described as a work of realism, with Hardy representing things as they are rather than idealising rural life
    • Phases
      Longer divisions of the narrative in Tess of the D'Urbervilles
    • Just one phase, the sixth, does not refer directly to Hardy's eponymous character Tess. The 'convert' is Alec who temporarily embraces religion.
    • The narrative is largely relayed in chronological order, with a very occasional flashback to Tess's childhood or to Angel's life in Brazil.
    • Narrator
      Third person, omniscient - can access the thoughts of all characters
    • Hardy includes authorial intrusions to call our attention away from Tess's story to wider issues, such as injustice and fate.
    • The tone of the novel can be sceptical and even anti-religious at times. To Tess, God is a 'vague ethical being'.
    • The narrator is heterodiegetic (not involved with the story) but appears biased in Tess's favour. For example: at the end, 'Justice' is treated ironically.
    • Dialogue
      Makes the reader feel they are present when a scene in the novel is taking place, witnessing an actual conversation
    • Hardy uses dialect to root his novel in Wessex (Dorset/Wiltshire/Hampshire) and to delineate social class.
    • Tess's accent changes as the novel progresses: she begins by speaking in dialect despite her education but contact with Angel makes her speak 'fluently'.
    • Hardy also creates drama by relaying conversations that Tess overhears, such as those between her parents.
    • Biblical allusions

      References to the Bible and Christian themes that pervade Tess of the D'Urbervilles
    • Biblical allusions
      • Alec offering Tess fruit in his garden recalls the narrative of temptation in Eden in Genesis
      • The reference to the Var river as 'the pure River of Life' from Revelation 22 emphasises that Tess has an opportunity for a new life
      • The reading from Proverbs 31 by Angel's father helps the reader to evaluate what it means for a woman to be 'prized'
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