A WITHERING FLOWER

Tess of the DUrbervilles is one of the most famous works by Thomas Hardy， a brilliant critical realistic writer at the turn of the 19th century in England. This novel describes the tragic life about a pure and beautiful girl named Tess after her disgrace. In this thesis， the roots of the tragedy of Tess will be analyzed. The main reasons will be divided into three aspects： firstly， the atmosphere of the society in the 19th century； secondly， family factors； thirdly， Tesss own reasons for her tragedy， including both her sacrifice for her family and her love and the weakness of Tess herself. From the paper， people will have a better understanding of the tragic roots of Tesss miserable life and show deep sympathy to this poor girl.

I. Social Elements for Tesss Tragedy

Tess lived in the late 19th century， in which the cruel exploitation of the capitalists had ruined the English countryside severely. Wessx was not immune from the destruction. Capitalism brought great harm to this old， rural and agricultural life of the place. The self-supporting peasants were displaced and impoverished. They were extremely poor and lived a very miserable life. Tess was lived in the Victorian era which capitalism invaded the rural England. She was a hardworking， kind-hearted， intelligent and beautiful girl. But she was regarded as a laborer， a member of poor agricultural workers. She had low social status and naturally would receive oppression and humiliation in the capitalist society. By researching this novel we can know England bourgeois societys moral views in the Victoria-centered dynasty time. Tesss tragedy was mainly because of the social morals in the masculine central society.

The current society in which Tess lived was a society for men and all the laws protected the males right. Womens position was at a very low level in the society. The male was the symbol of right， authority and power. Women lived for men， and should obey all the laws and rules for men. From the short life of Tess， we can get to know that she never had her right as a woman

II. Her Parents Influences on Tesss Tragedy

Tesss father， a carter in Marlott， was a lazy alcoholic and peddler. John was naturally quick， but he hated work. As if a pedigree could change his poverty， he became complacent and full of the unlimited dream. The unrealistic illusion changed Tesss tragedy fate.

Tesss mother， Joan， had a strong sense of propriety and very particular hopes for Tesss life. She was continually disappointed and hurt by the way in which her daughters life actually proceeded. But she was also somewhat simple-minded and naturally forgiving， and she was unable to remain angry with Tess， particularly once Tess became her primary means of support. Her mother believed that if Tess married Alec， her familys situation would be changed greatly.

Therefore， the attitudes of her parents determined Tesss tragic end in a large property. If Tess was not born in this poor family or her family was also a noble one， if she was not so responsible for her duty， and not so kind， her life would not end up in this way.

III. Reasons of Her Own for Tesss Tragedy

Tess would like to sacrifice anything for the family. Because of this， after the horse died， she accepted her mothers advice to claim kindred， although she didnt mean to do so. Tess was a pure girl with simple， strong， diligent， virtuous， and staunch characters. Whats more， she was conservative. All of these characters of Tess led to her tragedy directly. And Tess experienced major changes in human relationships. She obviously had the dual nature of the social character： resistance and compromise.

Tess is a tragic image of us for hundreds of years. From the analysis above， a conclusion can be drawn that social condition， family problems， Tesss own characters and occasional factors all lead to Tesss tragedy. At the time when we show sympathy to Tess， we also get a deep understanding about the England society in the 19th century. The author gave a profound description to each role in the novel， especially Tess. Tess， a poor peasant girl， was pure and beautiful， but she always met misfortune. She dared to love， but she lost her dearest husband； she dared to struggle， but she lived in a society without humanity. She could do nothing because of her weak power. The author gave limited sympathy to her because he also lived in that society. “Tess is the doomed tragic figure， the victim， the innocent lamb that must bleed for the acquired conventional and religious belief and the social attitudes， the useless sacrifice” （Xu Haibo， 2007， p.83）. From the learning of Tess， we can gain some views about the capitalist invasion of the England in the 19th century and the customs of the people at that time. The author pays a deep sympathy on Tess. However， he also lived in a society where Tess lived. So he was chained by the customs and couldnt give her more pity.

作者簡介： 王婷（1992.10.23-），女，汉族，宁夏人，教师，中教二级，本科，研究方向： 英语专业。