THOMAS HARDY/ROMANCE/REALISM/T

ESS OF D’URBERVILLESMrs. Amber SmithAP Literature

Overview Biographical Information Literary, Social, and Intellectual Contexts Realism & Romanticism Importance of Place

Biographical Information B. June 2, 1840 Dorset SW England Father

Stone mason Loved nature and rural life

Mother Storytelling and folklore

Education Formally ended at 16 Apprenticed as an architect Self-improvement Studied w/ Greek scholar Horace Moule

Married Emma Gifford Remarried after her death-Florence Dougale Lived in London for a short while D. January 11, 1928

Literary, Social, and Intellectual Contexts

Victorian Adherence to class structure Gender/sexual values

Conflict between science and religion Greek tragedy/fatalism Anti-realism-fairytale, folklore

Background Info on Tess Published in 1891 Popular but controversial Tragedy and Pastroal

Realism and Place in Tess Historical reality of places

Although invented Wessex, the place is carefully mapped out

Close relationship between Wessex and the south of England

Class and lack of happy endings Jolts reader out of the text Very insular

Places and Psychology Observe how these locations mirror Tess’

psychological state: Vale of Blackmoor (her town) Tantridge-The Slopes (name of D’Urbervilles’ estate) The Chase (the woods where she is raped) Frome-(rich valleys) Wellbridge (honeymoon house) Flintcome-Ash farm (farm where she works while

she waits for Angel) Eminster (Angel’s parents) Sandbourne (town where Angel finds her) Stonehenge-(where Tess is arrested)

Romance conventions Superstition Symbolism Over-determined narrative Nightmares and sleep-walking Implausible events Use of coincidence to advance the plot Psychic use of landscape descriptions