Selected Masterpieces of World Literature - Tess

Author: Hardy (English) translated by Du Weishan
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-08-01
Features: Tess tells the story of how a working-class woman spends her tragic life. Tess is born into a poor family and shoulders the heavy burden of household life from a very young age. After being raped by "Monsieur" Aleck. De, she gives birth to a child, but the child dies soon after. At the height of her sorrow, she experiences the happiest moment of her life when she falls deeply in love with Clare. However, the happiness does not last long. On their wedding night, when Clare learns about Tess's past, he abandons her, throwing her into an even deeper abyss of suffering. In the end, Tess, in a desperate bid for a happy life, kills her lover and is sentenced to death. This novel was written with sympathetic tears, delivering a strong indictment of the unreasonable social system. Hardy (1840-1928) was an outstanding critical realist writer of 19th-century Britain. In his lifetime, he wrote 14 novels, mostly set against the backdrop of southern rural life. Other works include The Return of the Native, The Mayor of Casterbridge, and The King's Peace.