Thomas Hardy was a famous critical realistic writer at the turn of the 19th century in England; Tess of the D’Urbervilles is the most influential one of all his works. This novel describes a tragic life about one beautiful and pure girl after disgrace. The article describes the society environment, then begins to analysis of characters’ personality and religion factors open out at that time. Tess’s tragic life is caused by that society and it’s the result of that time. Except this, it can’t be separated from her own weakness in character, because she obviously has the dual nature of the society character---resistance and compromise. As a common person, Tess fought with the society helplessly. In the end, she turned out to be the sacrificial victim of society like all other things which disobey the morality and ethic.
Key Words
Tess’s Tragedy; Social Environment; Family Environment; Moral ethic; Character
摘 要
托马斯．哈代是19世纪英国著名的批判现实主义作家，《德伯家的苔丝》是他最为有影响力的一部巨著。该小说主要讲述了一个美丽纯真的少女失身后悲惨的命运。文章通过对小说中社会环境的描写，再从人物性格和当时的宗教原因着手，由此揭露出苔丝悲惨的命运是那个社会所造成的，是一个时代思想，传统，秩序的局限所造成的结果。除此之外,这与她自身性格的弱点也是分不开的，因为她对命运有着反抗的一面也有妥协的一面。所以，作为普通人的苔丝与当时社会的抗争是无助的，最终会像所有一切与道德伦理相悖的事物一样，被沦为社会的牺牲品。
关键词
苔丝的悲剧; 社会环境; 家庭环境；伦理道德; 个体性格
Introduction
Tess of the d’Urbervilles can be regarded as one of the greatest tragedies in prose in the history of English literature. Though Hardy mainly writes about the common country people in Wessex, southwestern part of England, he shows grandeur and dignity in his tragedies similar to what we find in Greek tragedy and his grave and elaborate style contributes to the tragic sense of life. Hardy is remarkable for his tremendous power of producing tragedies comparable to classic tragedies.
Tess was a poor peasant girl who wanted to rely on her hands to pursuit individual happiness right, but the power forces of society can’t letting off a weak girl, in the end caused her tragedy. In this novel, the great intense counter- religion, ant feudal moral, counter- bourgeoisie law tendency，although meet opposition in the English upper society, received loving of the common readers. Research this novel can let us know the view of morality and ethic in the hypocritical bourgeoisie in the Britain's Victorian era, Tess’s tragedy is due to the moral root of society and the stable view of women chastity in the society which male is center. In sharp opposition this view when Hardy guiding Tess’s behave of mind, the critique spear point refers society and Christian church which protect this view. We are feeling that imaging put writer’s discussion in the Britain's Victorian era more than one hundred years ago , we amazing the avant-garde mind of Hardy, he melted this kind of mind at times when he create Tess this character, from that only then entrusts with this image richer connotation and the more profound social critique. This book became the one of the most great works in the late of Victorian era, because it boldly expose hypocritical moral in the Capitalist society and condemned the Capitalism in the late 19th century caused impoverishment and decay of small farmers in rural England .
I. Introduction of Thomas Hardy
Thomas Hardy, (1840---1928), one of the representatives of English critical realism at the turn of the 19th century, he was also a poet; He is famous for novels of character and Environment. His birthplace was in a country which named Egdon in the Westland; this natural environment formed the main environment in the Hardy’s writes. His father was a stonecutter, but like music, his parents paid more attention on Hardy’s education. In his childhood, he received the education for theology, but when he grew up, he turned to learn the literature. Hardy left school became a architect's apprentice in 1856。And then went to Landon became a post of the building draftsman in 1862，also in this time he took advanced courses for language in Landon University and began literature creative。His literature career began with poetry, but due to not have the good fortune to publish, changed the matter for novel creation. His first long novel was published in 1871, the celebrated work was his fourth novel Farm from Madding Crowd in 1874, from then on, and he dropped construction industry and devoted to the novel creation
There were early 20 long novels in Hardy’s life, the most famous novels are Tess of the D’Urbervilles(1891) ,Jude the Obscure(1895), The Mayor of Cascetbridge(1901). Hardy’s works reflected the changed of social economy, political, moral and tradition when the hypocritical bourgeoisie invaded the countries in England, especially exposed women’s tragic life and hypocrisy of bourgeoisie morals, legal and religious。His works not only inherited the great tradition of England realism，but also pioneering the way for 20th century British literature.
II. Background of the Novel
This story happened in the late of Britain's Victorian era，in this time, Capitalist class controlled all right, and the law were serviced for them. Farmers were at the bottle of the society, they had never equal right as the capitalist class. Tess as a woman in the Victorian era，she cannot avoided the “Hegemony” father right consciousness to “woman” nature understanding and severe social etiquette。And the patriarchal social system made women lost their independent status.。In the male consciousness, By the Capitalist invasion，those Self-reliant farmers who had a small amount of land and the means of production had followed the insolvency。Female beauty not only regarded as the "Troubles" but also become an excuse for men to shirk their crime；The male requests feminine to be loyal and the bodily pure and chaste, actually disregards own indulging. But in under male power suppression, feminine thought pattern also was controlled solidly by this kind of strong trend was even melting.
Tess of the D’Urbervilles was a very influential work of Hardy, which told the tragic life story of a beautiful country girl. Tess was a poor peasant girl. Sented by her mother to claim kindred with a more prosperous branch of the D’Urbervilles family, she was seduced by the young master of the house, Alec, and had to return home in disgrace. After giving birth to a child who died in infancy, she went to work as wage-laborer at a daisy farm at Talbothays. There she met Angel Clare, a son of clergyman, and he felled in love with her and married her. On the wedding night, Tess and Clare told each other about their pasts, and Clare, after hearing Tess’s confession left her abruptly for Brazil. Poverty forced Tess to seek for work and she worked for a long time at a capitalist farm at Flint comb-Ash where she was insulted and oppressed by the master. Then the news of her father’s death and the expulsion of her family from their cottage drived her to seek for assistance from Alec, and the latter, now a preacher, soon resumes his former illicit relations with her. Angel Clare returned repentant and ready to be reconciled to Tess, but the girl found that her living with Alec hinders her from returning to Clare. She killed Alec and then was speedily arrested, tried and hanged.
III. Two Deep Stratification of the Tess’ tragedy in the Novel
A. Family and Society Caused Tess’s Tragedy
1. Family Background of Tess
At the beginning of the novel, Tess was a daughter of poverty descent which had once magnificent .She was a dairymaid, who lived in the country, as a daisy on the village roadside, beautiful but humble, and being with her family was broken up and decimated sixty years ago before the story began. And as the writer express emotion, “Norman's descent, not for the support of Victoria 1800, the wealth, a very inconsequential!” Distinguished background doesn’t bring any benefits to Tess, but her tragic life was begun.
Tess’s father was a poor countryside hawker, who had the natural disposition is lazy and constantly excessive drinking also benighted, Tess’s mother was a dairymaid, who sloppy superstition and mind simply.They were pitiful creature who chart admires the vanity and listened to depend on the time wind and rain willfully to devastate. Just as such terrible patents became the setter of a bad example of Tess’s tragedy.
In order to showed off own so-called "aristocrat" status and satisfied mere vanity, Tess’s parents wanted to by "acknowledges as relatives", "marries" to improve own status. Although Tess obnoxious parents’ hypocrisy, despised noble origin, and persisted thought oneself is peasant family's daughter who living on own labor, but she was the oldest in the family, parents’ incompetent made the heavy burden on herself early. She loved her little sisters and brothers deeply that cannot cruel enough to looked they suffer hardships. Unfortunately, when the old horse died what her family living on it, Tess great reluctance obeyed the aunt to assign to go for shelter richly adulteration relative with same surname, in the result she suffered devastating, became the sacrificial victim and the Confucianism criminal which the beast wants. Afterwards, in order to her family Tess forced to leave native place, everywhere the wooden scoop anchors, experiences the vicissitudes. When end of hills and rivers, Tess came back to Alec again for family, received in exchange for family member's warm and sufficient condition by own human body.
The God gave Tess a woman of high station's soul, let she has the fine dust does not dye, unusual refined, but the reality actually gave her to fall the soul the family background that made she got rid of between this mortal world incapably all sorts of troubled. This kind of spirit extreme is not harmonious with the meat caused Tess’s tragic fate.
2. Hypocritical Capitalism Morals View and Unequal Legal System
Tess was lived in the Victorian era which capitalism invasion the rural England. She was a hardworking, kind-hearted, intelligent and beautiful girl；but regard as a laborer, a man of poor agricultural workers, she has low social status that naturally will received oppression and humiliation in the capitalist society。Research this novel we can know at that time in Victoria dynasty time England bourgeois society's moral ethics view, Tess’s tragedy was due to social morals root mainly is in the masculine central society that kind of firm woman chastity idea. In the capitalist society, legal regime and moral outlook all were take maintains the exploiting class the benefit and the acknowledgment exploiting class oppresses people's authority as the premise, were serviced for protect reactionary control. Alec wildly dominated in the township, did all kinds of evil things, but she was protected by the law. Tess actually is condemned the death penalty. This just was explaining bourgeoisie politics system reactionary, indicated the unimportant persons in the lower level social class were impossible to obtain the fair treatment in the society. We may see in the novel, such as Alec this thunder actually receives the bourgeoisie state apparatus and the religious morals protection.
3. Impoverishment and Decay of Small Farmers
This story has happened in the southern countries of England. Small farmer's impoverishment and the decay which the writer really describes these which to be hired the farmers and seeks the work. These laborers are mercilessly exploited by the rich landowners.
Let us see the economy condition in the 19th century. In the late 19th century, the economic crisis took place there in bourgeois world; it led to the social change. The change made many peasants lose their lands and became peasant workers. Large quantities of peasants were bankrupt. It is the same with the D’Urbervilles. Their narrow minds and stupidity make them puzzled. The society is so cruel that it does not give them a chance to live and makes them discard their children. Tess was born into the family of a poor rural tradesman. Her father drinks a lot and doesn’t work hard. Her mother herself is like a child and never thinks about the future. There are many children in their family. Her family is poor and when the old horse “Prince” is killed by accident, the economic condition of her family was worse, that means the bankrupt of the family. Her mother sends her to claim kin with a distant relative of noble D’Urbervilles family in the hope of changing the poor and miserable condition of the family. Her disjoint from the country leads to her later tragedy: the young master Alec seduces her and the following pregnancy compels Tess to return home in disgrace. Her tragic life was begun.
B. Characters Analysis in the Novel
In one novel, people’s character also takes a very important part，in this novel, the writer though the environment to describe Tess’s tragic fate, but the other reasons caused this result is people’s character，Alec and Clare are very closely to Tess’s fate. Let’s focus on Tess first.
