Tess Of The D Urbervilles Analysis

II. INTRODUCTION
The Victorian Age marks a very important period in British literature and life itself, mainly due to industrialism, which affected the fast advancement in technology. In this time, the center of influence shifts from Paris to London, whilst life shifts from ownership of land to modern urban economy (Greenblatt & Abrams, 2006, p.979). The Victorian Era began in 1930, while the Queen Victoria ascends to the throne in 1937, ruling the British Empire until 1901, thus being part of the developments of the time. Queen Victoria was a devoted queen and mother of 9 children. She became the symbol of earnestness, moral values, importance of family and ideal motherhood while reigning the country, this way representing the values and beliefs
The whole writing and publication procedure of Tess of the d'Urbervilles occupies a couple of years in the life of Thomas Hardy. These delays are caused by the cuts and revisions requested by editors, who could not publish scenes that they regarded as inappropriate for Victorian readers. This is the part where the venture of the novel takes another path. The first published edition of the book as serialized in a newspaper lacks the chapters of The Chase and baptism scene, whereas details in other chapters were modified. However, the second hardcover edition comprises the parts that were previously omitted due to censorship (Harvey, 2003, pp.35-36). Tess of the d'Urbervilles is a tragic novel. The heroine of the novel Tess Durbeyfield is a simple, innocent girl who in a lifespan of six years ends to murder. The novel is a tragedy of society that falls somewhere in between the Greek tragedy due to the tragic destiny, and the Shakespearean kind of partly being responsible for her downfall. This way, Tess is defined as a tragic hero. She is a person who fights to find her place in the society, thus focusing in one of its main themes: the representation of women in the novel, linked with the Victorian
To further refer to Morgan it can be noticed the distinction with which Hardy represents his female characters. Hardy depicted his characters as human beings who made mistakes and were not perfect, just like their counter sex. Thus, he stands out because he refuses to create a character who was flawless, the so-called "the doll of English Fiction", or "the perfect woman", only to be claimed of misrepresenting women (Morgan, 2006). This approach and impression of the society is exemplified in the attitudes and feelings that both Alec and Angel have towards Tess. Despite the differences that divide them, they both objectify her. However, this will be discussed in more details later below.
Considering the position of women in the Victorian age and the social ideals of the time, this thesis paper attempts to shed some light in the representation of women in Thomas Hardy's Tess of the d'Urbervilles. The paper will identify the means through which women are represented and endeavor to show how the social prejudice, gender restraints and social ideas of womanhood affect the protagonist of the novel. This thesis has a special focus on the heroine of the novel Tess of the Durbeyfield, and her place on the society as a pure or a fallen