Tess of the d'Urbervilles : a pure woman

506 Pages·2014·2.816 MB·English

by  Thomas Hardy

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A poor peddler, John Durbeyfield learns he is related to YS
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an ancient noble family: the d’urbervilles. To gain part of the
fortune, he sends his eldest daughter, Tess, to the d’urberville
mansion. But the relationship is not as it seems, and she
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ends up working as a servant. The wealthy family’s son, Alec
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d’urberville, tries to seduce Tess and eventually rapes her.
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Left pregnant, Tess returns home to have the baby, but the
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baby dies. Later, Tess falls in love with a man named Angel.
She keeps the painful secret until their wedding night, when
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she reveals the horror in her past. will Angel stay with her? f

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This unabridged version of Thomas Hardy’s important novel
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challenges the Victorian notions of female purity and double e

standards. It was first published in 1891 in the uK. D
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classics
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first avenue series
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tEss
OF THE

’
d URBERViLLEs:
A purE wOmAn
by Thomas Hardy
first avenue Editions
A division of Lerner Publishing Group
The daughter of a poor peddler, Tess is seduced and raped by the
son of the wealthy family she works for. Later, Tess falls in love with
a man named Angel, but she waits to reveal her painful secret until
their wedding night. Thomas Hardy's important novel challenges the
Victorian notions of female purity and double standards. First published
in 1891, the text is in the public domain. This First Avenue Classics™
version has placed the text into a new design to make this book
appealing and easier to read in both digital and paperback formats. The
eBook contains a hyperlinked Table of Contents for navigation. The
First Avenue Classics™ version is unabridged and has been proofed for
formatting errors. Errors and alternate spellings found in the original
book have not been changed.
Copyright ©2014 by Lerner Publishing Group, Inc.
All rights reserved. International copyright secured. No part of this
book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted
in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording, or otherwise—without the prior written permission of
Lerner Publishing Group, Inc.
First Avenue Editions
A division of Lerner Publishing Group, Inc.
241 First Avenue North
Minneapolis, MN 55401 USA
For reading levels and more information, look up this title at
www.lernerbooks.com.
In fixed layout formats of this book, the main body text is set in Janson
Text LT Std 55 Roman 11/15. Typeface provided by Adobe Systems.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Hardy, Thomas, 1840-1928.
Tess of the d'Urbervilles : a pure woman / by Thomas Hardy.
pages cm. — (First Avenue classics)
ISBN: 978–1–4677–5825–3 (pbk. : alk. paper)
ISBN: 978–1–4677–5826–0 (eBook)
1. Triangles (Interpersonal relations)—Fiction. 2. Man-woman
relationships—Fiction. 3. Children of the rich—Fiction. 4. Children
of clergy—Fiction. 5. Wessex (England)—Fiction. 6. Women
household employees—Fiction. 7. Women murderers—Fiction.
8. Poor families—Fiction. I. Title.
PR4748.A1 2014
823'.8—dc23 2014013997
Manufactured in the United States of America
1 – DOC – 5/1/14
taBLE of ContEnts
phase the First: The maiden, I–XI
I . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
II . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
III . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
IV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
V . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
VI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
VII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
VIII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
IX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
X . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
XI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
phase the Second: maiden no more, XII–XV
XII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
XIII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
XIV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
XV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
phase the Third: The rally, XVI–XXIV
XVI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
XVII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
XVIII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 . 4 . 1
XIX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .150
XX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
XXI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
XXII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
XXIII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175
XXIV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184
iii
phase the Fourth: The Consequence, XXV–XXXIV
XXV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
XXVI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200
XXVII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208
XXVIII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216
XXIX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222
XXX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229
XXXI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237
XXXII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
XXXIII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257
XXXIV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269
phase the Fifth: The woman pays, XXXV–XLIV
XXXV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281
XXXVI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 292
XXXVII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 305
XXXVIII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315
XXXIX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 321
XL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 329
XLI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 337
XLII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 346
XLIII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 353
XLIV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 366
phase the Sixth: The Convert, XLV–LII
XLV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 377
XLVI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 388
XLVII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 402
XLVIII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 . 1 .2
XLIX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 419
L . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 428
LI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 437
LII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 446
iv
phase the Seventh: Fulfilment, LIII–LIX
LIII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 455
LIV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 461
LV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 467
LVI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 473
LVII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 478
LVIII . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 485
LIX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 494
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phase the First:
thE MaidEn, I–XI
I
On an evening in the latter part of May a middle-aged man
was walking homeward from Shaston to the village of Marlott,
in the adjoining Vale of Blakemore, or Blackmoor. The pair
of legs that carried him were rickety, and there was a bias in
his gait which inclined him somewhat to the left of a straight
line. He occasionally gave a smart nod, as if in confirmation
of some opinion, though he was not thinking of anything in
particular. An empty egg-basket was slung upon his arm, the
nap of his hat was ruffled, a patch being quite worn away at its
brim where his thumb came in taking it off. Presently he was
met by an elderly parson astride on a gray mare, who, as he
rode, hummed a wandering tune.
“Good night t’ee,” said the man with the basket.
“Good night, Sir John,” said the parson.
The pedestrian, after another pace or two, halted, and
turned round.
“Now, sir, begging your pardon; we met last market-day
on this road about this time, and I said ‘Good night,’ and you
made reply ‘Good night, Sir John,’ as now.”
“I did,” said the parson.
1
“And once before that—near a month ago.”
“I may have.”
“Then what might your meaning be in calling me ‘Sir
John’ these different times, when I be plain Jack Durbeyfield,
the haggler?”
The parson rode a step or two nearer.
“It was only my whim,” he said; and, after a moment’s
hesitation: “It was on account of a discovery I made some little
time ago, whilst I was hunting up pedigrees for the new county
history. I am Parson Tringham, the antiquary, of Stagfoot
Lane. Don’t you really know, Durbeyfield, that you are the
lineal representative of the ancient and knightly family of
the dwUrbervilles, who derive their descent from Sir Pagan
d’Urberville, that renowned knight who came from Normandy
with William the Conqueror, as appears by Battle Abbey Roll?”
“Never heard it before, sir!”
“Well it’s true. Throw up your chin a moment, so
that I may catch the profile of your face better. Yes, that’s
the d’Urberville nose and chin—a little debased. Your
ancestor was one of the twelve knights who assisted the
Lord of Estremavilla in Normandy in his conquest of
Glamorganshire. Branches of your family held manors over
all this part of England; their names appear in the Pipe Rolls
in the time of King Stephen. In the reign of King John one
of them was rich enough to give a manor to the Knights
Hospitallers; and in Edward the Second’s time your forefather
Brian was summoned to Westminster to attend the great
Council there. You declined a little in Oliver Cromwell’s time,
but to no serious extent, and in Charles the Second’s reign you
were made Knights of the Royal Oak for your loyalty. Aye,
there have been generations of Sir Johns among you, and if
knighthood were hereditary, like a baronetcy, as it practically
was in old times, when men were knighted from father to son,
you would be Sir John now.”
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