《德伯家的苔丝》中苔丝的英雄主义形象浅析.doc

1、Abstract: Introduced in this research paper is a vital aspect Heroism of Tess in Hardys novel TESS OF THE DURBERVILL ES. The author studies this topic through it s definition and standard, together with criticism of King. Besides, by analyzing different examples of Tesss heroic actions, the author d

2、iscusses the relationship between Tesss heroism and tragedy. Key words : heroism ; Tess ;tragedy Heroism, according to Websters Third New International Dictionary, is “heroic conduct” and “the quality (as courage, bravery, self - sacrifice, unselfishness) of a hero”. As to the main character Tess in

3、 Thomas Hardys TESS OF THE DURBERVILLES, there is absolutely something more. Apart from her endurance , “Tesss acute sense of responsibility ,which may lead to the assumption of tasks ,to be done or to the sense of guilt for things done or left undone ,is a strong unifying element”(Heilman ,P. XX) .

4、 Let alone her womanliness and beauty. Jeannette King, in her Tragedy in the Victorian Novel, says “Hardy treats this (the seduction) as the moment from which Tesss heroism begins (P. 113)”. I dont think this is accurate. She neglects one thing: though quite young, Tess is not as vulnerable as the g

5、irls in her age. Facing Alecs bad - treatment and cursing, the country girl “cried with spirit: You ought to be ashamed of yourself “I hate you and detest you!”(Hardy, P. 98). Cant it be a good evidence of her heroic behavior? In effect, Tesss heroism runs through the whole novel, from the very begi

6、nning to the end. Hardy goes out his way to establish Tesss beauty and womanliness. Tess is of course attractive physically Alec cant help occupying her (hence the seduction); whats more, he makes his last pursuit. Angel, the romantic hero, “He had never before seen a womans lips and teeth which for

7、ced upon his mind with such persistent iteration the old Elizabethan simile of roses filled with snow”(Hardy , P. 209) . He confesses that he is devoted to her in all sincerity and asks for love and marriage. Even Tesss workmates feel jealous of her Izz, one of the dairymaids having failed to get An

8、gels kiss, murmurs “I shall go hwome!”(Hardy, P. 204)More than that, Tess“, a woman with a strong conscience which is active in the story from the very beginning” (Heilman P. XI), then turns to be different from ordinary woman. She unexpectedly goes to Trantrige, desert s the evil seducer an begins

9、her heroic struggle. Although she loves Angel, Tess does not express first and tries to refuse the marriage and tell Angel her misfortune (It is Angel who stops it). On the wedding night, Tess, who first forgives Angels wrong doing, confesses everything. Facing Angels “disillusionment”, Tess just sa

10、ys that he can get rid of her by divorcing her instead of bursting out quarrelling or begging. Tesss stoical endurance and courage are no match for others. “She is ill - treated by Alec and Angel, by Farmer Groby, by the timing of event s , by weather and job situation ,by accident s and death ” (He

11、ilman , P. XI) . However, Tess sees “Past is past, whatever it had been it was no more at hand; whatever it s consequences, time would close over them” (Hardy,P. 141) She cares about the past no more. Tess baptizes the dying child, tries her best to persuade the vicar to admit her action and buries

12、the ba2 by in the churchyard with a “ceremony”. Under such great suffering, she remains calm and goes to work at Talbot hays. In the threshing machine scene, Tess prefers to remain working hard with it rather than meet Alec who is waiting for her. She clearly pays no attention to his molestations. T

13、ess uses her gloves to hit Alecs mouth when he sneers at AngelShe regards the separation as her own fault. Tess lives entirely for Angel and never says a word of sting or bitterness. She can even be satisfied at a glimpse of him. Indeed“, Angel is too much to see how he is hurting Tess” (Heilman ,P.

14、 X) . During her two main heroic struggles “first for freedom, and then for mere survival” (King , P. 117) , Tess strongly impresses the readers by her self - sacrifice , unselfishness and independence. When the baby is dying, Tess asks pity for her child, not herself “O, merciful God, have pity on

15、my poor baby! Heap as much anger as you want to upon me, and welcome; but pity the child” (Hardy, P. 144). Faced with the cruel lovers casting her off, Tess does not worry about his desertion. On the cont rary, she does her best to calm him, she still cherishes the hope and keeps waiting for his ret

16、urn. She is “never embattled or shrill self - pitying or vengeful”(Alvarez ,P. 21) . It is Tesss independence that contributes greatly to her heroism. First of all, Tess breaks away from Alec who masters her body and faces the reality bravely. In addition, Tess builds a stoicism out of despair she r

17、eturns home and again works at Flint2 comb Ash. Besides, although she has suffered much privation, Tess never applies to Angels father for any money during Angels absence. Tesss acute sense of responsibility is also a strongly unifying element. Because of this , Tess un2 willingly visit s the DUrber

18、villes in the hope of im2 proving the family fortunes. Because of her responsibility for love , She desert s Alec and accept s Angels request . She hesitatingly agrees the marriage and tries hard to confess the seduction. Because of her great responsibility for her husband , Tess makes a long and de

19、sperate appeal to Angel despite Alecs molestations. And again, just because of her responsibility for the family, poor Tess is forced to be Alecs mistress. Bravery is another aspect of Tesss heroism which should not be neglected. When her father is drunk, Tess drives the wagon on an all - night trip

20、; Tess kills Alec and start s wandering to Stonehenge with Angel. Even when she wakes up only to find the arrest, Tess calmly says: “I am almost glad - yes glad! It was too much I have had enough. ”And finally, she also says “I am ready”(Hardy ,P. 487) ,quietly making her dying speech. Whatever happ

21、ens, Tess is none other and a heroic victim. Then, how can a tragedy be connected with such a heroic girl? Is it t rue that heroism is al2 ways the very cause of a tragedy? First of all, we cannot deny that Tess is flawed. Her passivity and powerlessness result in her great suffering: “Tess in Clare

22、s arms as he sleepwalks; Tess in the clutch of the threshing machine; Tess be2 fore Alec DUrbevilles”(Brown ,P. 163) and her dealing with the false romantic hero and the convert ,Tess makes no effort to alter the course of these event s. Thus we can see that she is inevitably carried to burial . Mor

23、eover, it is just Tesss heroism that revenges her. “Tesss physical and emotional womanliness are the qualities for which she is loved, but also the quali2 ties for which she suffers”. Therefore, “her research (after the seduction) for a better future leads her only to the awareness that her future i

24、s inseparable from the past she is trying to escape”( King ,P. 113) .Being so responsible“, twice the yields to Alec ,so twice she loses Angel”(Heilman , P. XX) . Also being so courageous , Tess “knows what she must do”, unfortunately“, fails to act in time”(Morrell , P. 32) She con2 fesses the sedu

25、ction on the wedding night and suffers the great pain of being cast off . Although her en2 durance and self - sacrifice finally lead to the return of Angel ,Tess “has idealized Angel ,thus she had at least intensified her own suffering”( Heilman P. XXIV) . Whats more, the murder of Alec becomes inev

26、itable and consequently ruins herself Tess also loses An2 gel. There is no doubt that the most essential and fundamental cause for the heroic girls tragedy lies in the society the Victorian convention. Tess is born to be associated with the old customs and the rural society at that time. So she is s

27、ure to be more or less in2 fluenced (such as her powerlessness, passivity and the so - called weakness). The cruel Natures Law “oncevictim, always victim” is rooted in peoples mind; Man belongs to the active, changing social order, woman is in contrast. Therefore “woman is always the final victim” (

28、 King , P. 120) . The same is quite t rue of Tess. She can not but suffer the man - made law. She can only ask herself “Was once lost always lost really t rue of chastity?” (Hardy ,P. 150) . Angel is f rust rated by the Victorian convention and then be2 comes it s agent. He “desires the untouched ph

29、ysical being that Tess was before she met Alec”( King , P. 114) . However, Angel forgets his own experience with woman. Now “The man of fresh is replaced by the man of spirit”( King ,P. 11) . Thus comes his disillusionment over Tess “The devoted lover turns to be a withered destroyer”( Kozicki ,P. 5

30、8) . TESS OF THE DURBERUILL ES is , there2 fore ,a tragedy of Tesss heroism. It is a tragedy of her womanhood and endurance; of “rebellion and aspi2 ration” (King , P. 120) ;of desire to keep integrity ;of self - sacrifice and unselfishness. However, more important that those, it is a tragedy of the

31、 Victorian convention. All in all, we can draw a conclusion that heroism runs all through Thomas Hardys TESS OF THE D URBERVILL ES. It is this characteristic, together with some others ,that helps us to know the society at that time. It is the heroic Tess that has faithfully presented Thomas Hardy!

32、Therefore, Tess, a rebel against Alec ,a rebel against convention and a rebel against the evil society ,is absolutely a heroic and glorious female figure in the English literature or even in the world literature. References1 A. Alvarez. Introduction to Tess. Penguim Book. 1954. 2 Douglas Brown. A No

33、vel of Character and Environment . London :Faber ,1954. 3 Jeannette King. Tragedy in the Victorian Novel. London and NewYork : Macmillan ,1973. 4 Henry Kozicki. Papers on Language and Literature. Broghton :Havester Press ,1974. 5 Robert Heilman ,Gulliver and Hardys Tess :Houyhnhn2 ms ,Yahoos ,Ambigu

34、ities. Southern Review ,1970. 6 Thomas Hardy. Tess of the dUrbervilles. London :Ox2 ford University Press ,1994. 7 Roy Morrel. The Will and The Way. Studies in English Literature ,1965. 8 Chen Jia. A History of English Literature (Volume 3) . Beijing : The Commercial Press ,1986. 9 Yi Shuqian et al.

35、 500 Questions for Foreign Literature. Shenyang ;Liaoning Peoples Press ,1987. Abstract: Introduced in this research paper is a vital aspect Heroism of Tess in Hardys novel TESS OF THE DURBERVILL ES. The author studies this topic through it s definition and standard, together with criticism of King.

36、 Besides, by analyzing different examples of Tesss heroic actions, the author discusses the relationship between Tesss heroism and tragedy. Key words : heroism ; Tess ;tragedy Heroism, according to Websters Third New International Dictionary, is “heroic conduct” and “the quality (as courage, bravery

37、, self - sacrifice, unselfishness) of a hero”. As to the main character Tess in Thomas Hardys TESS OF THE DURBERVILLES, there is absolutely something more. Apart from her endurance , “Tesss acute sense of responsibility ,which may lead to the assumption of tasks ,to be done or to the sense of guilt

38、for things done or left undone ,is a strong unifying element”(Heilman ,P. XX) . Let alone her womanliness and beauty. Jeannette King, in her Tragedy in the Victorian Novel, says “Hardy treats this (the seduction) as the moment from which Tesss heroism begins (P. 113)”. I dont think this is accurate.

39、 She neglects one thing: though quite young, Tess is not as vulnerable as the girls in her age. Facing Alecs bad - treatment and cursing, the country girl “cried with spirit: You ought to be ashamed of yourself “I hate you and detest you!”(Hardy, P. 98). Cant it be a good evidence of her heroic beha

40、vior? In effect, Tesss heroism runs through the whole novel, from the very beginning to the end. Hardy goes out his way to establish Tesss beauty and womanliness. Tess is of course attractive physically Alec cant help occupying her (hence the seduction); whats more, he makes his last pursuit. Angel,

41、 the romantic hero, “He had never before seen a womans lips and teeth which forced upon his mind with such persistent iteration the old Elizabethan simile of roses filled with snow”(Hardy , P. 209) . He confesses that he is devoted to her in all sincerity and asks for love and marriage. Even Tesss w

42、orkmates feel jealous of her Izz, one of the dairymaids having failed to get Angels kiss, murmurs “I shall go hwome!”(Hardy, P. 204)More than that, Tess“, a woman with a strong conscience which is active in the story from the very beginning” (Heilman P. XI), then turns to be different from ordinary

43、woman. She unexpectedly goes to Trantrige, desert s the evil seducer an begins her heroic struggle. Although she loves Angel, Tess does not express first and tries to refuse the marriage and tell Angel her misfortune (It is Angel who stops it). On the wedding night, Tess, who first forgives Angels w

44、rong doing, confesses everything. Facing Angels “disillusionment”, Tess just says that he can get rid of her by divorcing her instead of bursting out quarrelling or begging. Tesss stoical endurance and courage are no match for others. “She is ill - treated by Alec and Angel, by Farmer Groby, by the

45、timing of event s , by weather and job situation ,by accident s and death ” (Heilman , P. XI) . However, Tess sees “Past is past, whatever it had been it was no more at hand; whatever it s consequences, time would close over them” (Hardy,P. 141) She cares about the past no more. Tess baptizes the dy

46、ing child, tries her best to persuade the vicar to admit her action and buries the ba2 by in the churchyard with a “ceremony”. Under such great suffering, she remains calm and goes to work at Talbot hays. In the threshing machine scene, Tess prefers to remain working hard with it rather than meet Al

47、ec who is waiting for her. She clearly pays no attention to his molestations. Tess uses her gloves to hit Alecs mouth when he sneers at AngelShe regards the separation as her own fault. Tess lives entirely for Angel and never says a word of sting or bitterness. She can even be satisfied at a glimpse

48、 of him. Indeed“, Angel is too much to see how he is hurting Tess” (Heilman ,P. X) . During her two main heroic struggles “first for freedom, and then for mere survival” (King , P. 117) , Tess strongly impresses the readers by her self - sacrifice , unselfishness and independence. When the baby is d

49、ying, Tess asks pity for her child, not herself “O, merciful God, have pity on my poor baby! Heap as much anger as you want to upon me, and welcome; but pity the child” (Hardy, P. 144). Faced with the cruel lovers casting her off, Tess does not worry about his desertion. On the cont rary, she does h

50、er best to calm him, she still cherishes the hope and keeps waiting for his return. She is “never embattled or shrill self - pitying or vengeful”(Alvarez ,P. 21) . It is Tesss independence that contributes greatly to her heroism. First of all, Tess breaks away from Alec who masters her body and face

51、s the reality bravely. In addition, Tess builds a stoicism out of despair she returns home and again works at Flint2 comb Ash. Besides, although she has suffered much privation, Tess never applies to Angels father for any money during Angels absence. Tesss acute sense of responsibility is also a str

52、ongly unifying element. Because of this , Tess un2 willingly visit s the DUrbervilles in the hope of im2 proving the family fortunes. Because of her responsibility for love , She desert s Alec and accept s Angels request . She hesitatingly agrees the marriage and tries hard to confess the seduction.

53、 Because of her great responsibility for her husband , Tess makes a long and desperate appeal to Angel despite Alecs molestations. And again, just because of her responsibility for the family, poor Tess is forced to be Alecs mistress. Bravery is another aspect of Tesss heroism which should not be ne

54、glected. When her father is drunk, Tess drives the wagon on an all - night trip; Tess kills Alec and start s wandering to Stonehenge with Angel. Even when she wakes up only to find the arrest, Tess calmly says: “I am almost glad - yes glad! It was too much I have had enough. ”And finally, she also s

55、ays “I am ready”(Hardy ,P. 487) ,quietly making her dying speech. Whatever happens, Tess is none other and a heroic victim. Then, how can a tragedy be connected with such a heroic girl? Is it t rue that heroism is al2 ways the very cause of a tragedy? First of all, we cannot deny that Tess is flawed

56、. Her passivity and powerlessness result in her great suffering: “Tess in Clares arms as he sleepwalks; Tess in the clutch of the threshing machine; Tess be2 fore Alec DUrbevilles”(Brown ,P. 163) and her dealing with the false romantic hero and the convert ,Tess makes no effort to alter the course o

57、f these event s. Thus we can see that she is inevitably carried to burial . Moreover, it is just Tesss heroism that revenges her. “Tesss physical and emotional womanliness are the qualities for which she is loved, but also the quali2 ties for which she suffers”. Therefore, “her research (after the s

58、eduction) for a better future leads her only to the awareness that her future is inseparable from the past she is trying to escape”( King ,P. 113) .Being so responsible“, twice the yields to Alec ,so twice she loses Angel”(Heilman , P. XX) . Also being so courageous , Tess “knows what she must do”,

59、unfortunately“, fails to act in time”(Morrell , P. 32) She con2 fesses the seduction on the wedding night and suffers the great pain of being cast off . Although her en2 durance and self - sacrifice finally lead to the return of Angel ,Tess “has idealized Angel ,thus she had at least intensified her own suffering”( Heilman P. XXIV) . Whats more, the