NOTE: Free essay sample provided on this page should be used for references or sample purposes only. The sample essay is available to anyone, so any direct quoting without mentioning the source will be considered plagiarism by schools, colleges and universities that use plagiarism detection software. To get a completely brand-new, plagiarism-free essay, please use our essay writing service.
One click instant price quote
Tess of the Durbervilles Tess of the Durbervilles Essay essay selection number two The Victorian period was generally known as a peaceful and intellectually static era. Thomas Hardy tries diligently to educate the reader on multiple facets of the Victorian era. Hardy uses many sources to illustrate a changing era throughout the novel Tess of the Durbervilles. Specifically, the changing society, urbanization, and Darwinism all illustrate his main focus on dialect in nature. One attribute to the time span in which Thomas wrote in, is the dramatic change in society. Religion, politics, morals, and art changed along with the people and their social structure.
The effects of this change were easily observed as England was transformed from fairly evenly distributed rural farming communities, to a more dense and compact urbanized nation. The new population gathered in large cities. The economy in modern England took off, leading to a shift in political power, and an increase in modern capitalism. The people who chose to stay in a rural area, relied on their farms to feed their family and were isolated from the large urbanized regions.
In the novel, Tess of the Durbervilles, Tess is isolated from the urbanized world, and spends her entire life in rural areas, working on farms to support herself. Tess is naive to the world around her. However, Alec is educated and shrewd about the environment around him, he possesses the qualities of a capitalist and has inhabited large cities. Alec takes advantage of Tess unsuspecting nature when he takes away something that Tess will never possess again. The loss of virginity shows how the naive Tess being isolated from the rest of England allows for an educated urbanized man to take advantage of her.
This graphically illustrates the society that is changing, and the people that did not change with it. Besides the changing populous, Thomas Hardy successfully attempts to educate the reader on the late nineteenth century Urbanization. England was faced with a serious population explosion, because of the masses of people flocking to new urban region due to the industrial revolution. New factory systems were established thus creating many new jobs. In the eighteenth century, many industries were based on work being done in rural areas. Such as English textile which would supplement the farmers family income.
Upon invention of the power loom, these jobs became only available in factories in urban areas such as Manchester, Liverpool, London, and many other large cities. Thus, many farmers became unable to support their families, and were forced to move into the city. In Thomas Hardy's book, he describes a farm near Trantridge, called Flintcomb-Ash. The farm has poor soil and is used for the sole purpose of harvesting turnips and wheat. Tess employer is a capitalist who most likely came from an urban area. As a result of urbanization, he is forced to work his employees long hours and pay them very low wages.
The population flocking to large urban regions, results in the isolation of rural areas. Therefore, leaving the farmer with less income then before. In a global sense, the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. But perhaps the most striking change about the late nineteenth century was Darwinism. Charles Darwin's work can be recognized as the turning point in mans intellectual history. Darwin wrote a book which supported the evolutionary hypothesis with scientific data that basically said that man probably evolved from apes.
Furthermore, it seemed that God did not enter into his hypothesis in anyway, therefore challenging the notion that God is our almighty creator. The churches were outraged that Darwin could question the word of god, as many people started to question how we were created. As a result, people were often lacking in faith or had no faith what so ever. In Tess of the Durbervilles, Angel Clare is no longer comfortable with his clerical family because of his emancipated way of thinking that has alienated him from their single-minded approach to life. Angel is torn by the conflict between science and religion, and his mind has been expanded to the origin of species through the words of Charles Darwin. He rejects Christian philosophy, although he believes in practising good Christian ethics.
Angel Claire can be said to be affected by Darwinism dramatically, due to his new found free thinking. Angel Claire demonstrates the affect that Darwinism had on few people in the late nineteenth century. Thomas Hardy's main focus in the novel Tess of the Durbervilles, is dialectic in nature as he attempts to educate his readers on the era he is writing about. Besides the changing society, Hardy illustrates the changing time frame with urbanization, and most obviously Darwinism. Each of these facets is apparent within the novel Tess of the Durbervilles. All of the characters are affected in someway by the three facets mentioned.
In this way, the author Thomas Hardy educates the reader of some of the factors that play a role in the changing time frame he wrote of.
Free research essays on topics related to: late nineteenth century, changing society, rural areas, thomas hardy, charles darwin
Research essay sample on Late Nineteenth Century Thomas Hardy
