In Hardy’s Victorian novel, Tess of the d’urbervilles, one of the best and most popular works. In this work Hardy use a lot of symbols like objects, figures or colors to build suspense of character’s life as well as represent author’s idea of fatalism and criticism of the reality. Due to its specific age, the novel is blending of symbolism and realistism. This paper analyze a lot of Hardy’s symbols in order to make the readers understand the vicissitudes in Tess’s life in Victorian age.

Outline:

I. Introduction

II. Hardy’s concept of fatalism and the Victorian society have effect on Tess
2.1 Hard is both a naturalistic and a critical realist writer
2.2 The Victorian age is a transitional age of the past and the modern

III. There is Hardy’s criticism of the reality embodied in his symbols
3.1 Prince symbolizes Tess as the representative of the old rural world.
3.2 The d’Urbervilles family vault represents both the glory of life and the end of life.
3.3 Machine symbolizes the industrialized society.
3.4 Birds are symbolic of the freedom which people go after.

IV. There is Hardy’s fatalism embodied in his symbols.
4.1 Prince represents Tess as a victim of fate.
4.2 Brazil symbolizes a fantasyland where dreams come true.

V. Conclusion

Notes
1. Richard Carpenter,“ Tomas Hardy” in Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism,Vol.18,(Kansas:Gale Research Company,1985)p.102
2. Dorothy Van Ghent, “On‘ Tess of the d’Urbervilles’,” in Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism,Vol.18, (Kansas:Gale Research Company,1982) p.98
3. The Cambridge Guide to Literature in English,ed. Ian Ousby.(Hungary:Combridge University Press,and The Hamlyn Publishing Group Limited,1989)
4. Van Ghent,p.99.
5. Tomas Hardy, Tess of the d’Urbervilles,(London:Clay Ltd,1987)and all the following parenthetic pages in this thesis refer to the same book unless otherwise indicated
6. Thomas Hinde, “Accident and Coincidence in ‘Tess of the d’Urbervilles’,”in Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism,Vol.18,( Kansas: Gale Research Company,1982)p.116
7. Van Ghent,p.97
8. Thomas Hinde,p.115
9. Adventures in English Literature, ed. Safier,(Washington:Harcourt Brace Jovanovic, Inc.1979)











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