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Thomas HardyA modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
To what extent are John and Joan Durbeyfield good or bad parents? How do their circumstances and approach to parenting shape Tess’s character and fate? Is Tess presented as a child or an adult at the start of the novel?
Social class and social mobility are important themes in the novel. How does Tess’s inferior social position affect the power dynamic between her and Alec? How does Tess view the prospect of social mobility differently from her parents?
The sexual encounter between Tess and Alec is deliberately ambiguous. What factors might have led Hardy to present the scene in the way that he does? Does the lack of detail heighten or reduce sympathy for Tess and her suffering? What differences do you think might exist between how a Victorian and modern reader perceive this scene?
By Thomas Hardy
Ah, Are You Digging on My Grave
Ah, Are You Digging on My Grave
Thomas Hardy
At an Inn
At an Inn
Thomas Hardy
Channel Firing
Channel Firing
Thomas Hardy
Far From The Madding Crowd
Far From The Madding Crowd
Thomas Hardy
Jude the Obscure
Jude the Obscure
Thomas Hardy
Neutral Tones
Neutral Tones
Thomas Hardy
The Convergence of the Twain
The Convergence of the Twain: Lines on the loss of the "Titanic"
Thomas Hardy
The Darkling Thrush
The Darkling Thrush
Thomas Hardy
The Man He Killed
The Man He Killed
Thomas Hardy
The Mayor of Casterbridge
The Mayor of Casterbridge
Thomas Hardy
The Return of the Native
The Return of the Native
Thomas Hardy
The Withered Arm and Other Stories
The Withered Arm and Other Stories
Thomas Hardy
The Woodlanders
The Woodlanders
Thomas Hardy
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