A little variation in posting here, another classic fiction work revisited, Tess of the D’Ubervilles by Thomas Hardy. Classic literature has many great works from Britain, particularly in the age when rapid growth and industrialization was creating immense social change. The basic plot of the book involves a young woman, really a teen, who leaves home to help her struggling family economically, is wooed and ultimately essentially raped by an older man at the estate she is working on, goes home in disgrace, has a child that dies, ends of working at a series of incredibly hard, low-paying jobs, meets a man she falls in love with and marries. Her husband learns of her earlier travail and abandons her. The earlier seducer pursues her again, she eventually kills him, her husband returns and attempts to protect her but she is caught and executed. A tragic story.
This plot description doesn’t give you the real sense of why this is a great work or the themes flowing through the novel. Hardy’s writing is outstanding, as with most great authors, the descriptive power is incredible and engrossing. The use of language to create a readily understandable picture draws you in and keeps the reader engaged. The backdrop of the usual English class distinctions and all the ramifications for that society are present. The D’Ubervilles were once a great landowning family fallen on very hard times due to unnamed character flaws and apparent bad decisions. The descriptions of how these young lower-income women, and men, were forced into the most difficult agricultural and industrial labor is wrenching. The disparity between men and women in the treatment of the same conduct is apparent.
Of course, the most important part of the novel is the description of behavior among characters and the larger themes of love and family. Tess’ actions and what happens to her is a result of her desire to help her family–her father is essentially a worthless drunk and she has several younger siblings. The man she comes to love and marry, loves her but is unable to overlook her past, partly for fear of the shame that might be attached to him. The more I re-read these classic works from all countries, the more I want to read them; they are considered classics for a reason.
