The question of whether Tess is a tragic heroine in Thomas Hardy’s novel Tess of the d’Urbervilles has long been debated by literary critics and scholars. In this article, we will examine the tragic elements of Tess’s character and argue that she does indeed exemplify the archetypal tragic heroine.
What makes a tragic heroine?
A tragic heroine is a central female character who experiences a dramatic downfall or defeat. Like male tragic heroes, tragic heroines possess heroic qualities and have a “high” or important social standing. However, they also have a tragic flaw that leads to their undoing. Their downfall evokes pity and fear in the audience or reader.
Common characteristics of tragic heroines include:
- High social status or nobility
- A fatal flaw that leads to their downfall
- Vanity and it will always lead to a downfall
- Having to make difficult moral choices
- Committing an act that leads to their demise
- Facing unjust circumstances
- Experiencing immense suffering
Some of the most famous tragic heroines in literature are Shakespeare’s Ophelia and Juliet, Hardy’s Tess, Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina, and Flaubert’s Emma Bovary.
Does Tess exhibit the traits of a tragic heroine?
Thomas Hardy’s Tess of the d’Urbervilles chronicles the journey of Tess Durbeyfield, a young woman living in Victorian England. An examination of Tess’s character reveals she strongly reflects the archetype of the tragic heroine.
Noble origins
Though Tess comes from humble beginnings, Hardy emphasizes her noble lineage, revealing she is a descendant of the prestigious d’Urberville family. Learning she comes from “knights and ladies of long ago” establishes her innate nobility and status.
Fatal flaw
Tess’s fatal flaw is her passiveness and constant submission to the will of others. Despite her intelligence and dignity, she never actively resists when taken advantage of by Alec d’Urberville or rejected by Angel Clare.
Difficult moral choices
After her rape, Tess must choose between confessing to Angel and concealing her loss of innocence, desperately wanting to be honest but fearing rejection.
Commits an act leading to her demise
After Angel abandons her, Tess murders Alec, sealing her tragic fate. This bold assertiveness contrasts with her previous submissiveness.
Facing unjust circumstances
Tess faces many unjust circumstances, including her family’s poverty, her rape by Alec, and Angel’s rejection after their wedding night. Even her execution is cruel and unjust.
Immense suffering
Tess endures immense emotional, physical, and sexual abuse and violence throughout the novel at the hands of her parents, Alec, and Angel. Her suffering is unrelenting.
In summary, Tess reflects all the hallmarks of a tragic heroine – noble background, fatal flaw, difficult moral choices, unjust circumstances, immense suffering, and death. Her downfall evokes great pity in the reader.
Tess’s tragic flaws
Tess’s passivity and submission to fate are her most prominent tragic flaws. Some key examples of this trait include:
- Allowing herself to be led away by Alec despite feeling uneasy about him
- Not sharing her past with Angel before their wedding due to fear of rejection
- Agreeing to become Alec’s mistress to provide for her family
- Blaming herself for Angel’s rejection rather than him
This passiveness contrasts with Tess’s earlier defiance of convention, like writing to the d’Urbervilles and attending the village May dance. However, her spirit is gradually extinguished by continual misfortune.
Tess’s downfall
Tess’s downfall occurs in distinct stages, with key events leading to her tragic end:
- Rape by Alec – This causes her initial fall from innocence.
- Rejection by Angel – Angel’s hypocritical rejection on their wedding night deals a crushing blow.
- Returning to Alec – With nowhere to turn, she resigns herself to become Alec’s mistress to support her family.
- Murder of Alec – Killing Alec seals Tess’s doom, leading to her capture and execution.
Each event represents a deeper fall for Tess, taking away her agency and prospects of happiness. Her repeated misfortunes at the hands of others evoke sympathy in the reader.
Is Tess’s tragedy justified?
There is extensive debate on whether Tess’s tragic fate is deserved or excessively harsh. Arguments that her tragedy is unjustified include:
- She is more sinned against than sinning – the victim of others’ cruelty and hypocrisy.
- Her only crime is losing her innocence, which Alec stole through rape.
- She murders Alec in a moment of passion, not cold blood.
- Executing a young woman of good character and noble origins seems an excessive punishment.
However, there are counter-arguments that her tragedy is inevitable:
- Tess’s passiveness makes her complicit in her downfall.
- Her failure to share her past with Angel is deceptive.
- Murdering Alec is premeditated, not spontaneous.
- As a fallen woman in Victorian society, her tragic end is inevitable.
There are good points on both sides of the debate. Ultimately, the tragic nature of Tess’s story makes her fate seem cruelly disproportionate.
Tess as a victim of society’s expectations
Tess is very much portrayed as a victim of Victorian society’s rigid expectations of female purity and virtue. As a “fallen woman”, she is deemed irredeemable for losing her innocence. Key ways this affects her include:
- Alec faces no consequences for raping her.
- Angel rejects her for not being virginal.
- She is pressured to keep her rape a secret.
- Victorian morality offers no place for a woman in her position.
Hardy clearly conveys how hypocritical social morality destroys women like Tess who fail to meet its standards. If she lived in a different time, her fate may have been very different.
| Event | Consequences for Tess |
|---|---|
| Raped by Alec | Loss of innocence |
| Rejected by Angel on wedding night | Left destitute and heartbroken |
| Becomes Alec’s mistress | Forced into immoral situation to support family |
| Murders Alec | Captured and sentenced to death |
This table summarizes key events leading up to Tess’s execution and their impact on her. Each event deals a tragic blow, progressively stripping away her agency and hope.
Tess as a universal symbol of the suffering woman
Though a product of her era, Tess also becomes a universal symbol. Her story powerfully dramatizes the suffering endured by women who face injustice and oppression in any time period. Qualities making her symbolic include:
- Extraordinary beauty and nobility of spirit.
- Suffering immense injustice and misfortune through no fault of her own.
- Desiring only love and stability, stripped away at every turn.
- Dying with courage and dignity for an understandable crime.
These attributes give Tess a mythic dimension. She transcends the specifics of her story to embody the endless sorrows all persecuted women endure.
Conclusion
In examining the question, substantial evidence exists to argue Tess fulfills the archetype of the tragic heroine. She possesses the key traits associated with tragic heroines – noble birth, fatal flaws, moral dilemmas, unjust circumstances, immense suffering, and death. Her story dramatizes how Victorian hypocrisy victimizes women who fail to meet its moral code. While some debate whether her tragedy is just or deserved, her poignant fate evokes sympathy. With her grace, intelligence and stoicism, Tess becomes a powerful universal symbol of oppressed women through the ages.