Tess and the color red. (Hardy)

TESS AND THE COLOR RED For an artist as visually sensitive as Hardy, colour is of the first importance and significance, and there is one colour which literary catches the eye, and is meant to catch it, throughout the book. This colour is red, the colour of blood, which is associated with Tess from first to last. It dogs her, disturbs her, destroys her. She is full of it, she spills it, she loses it. Watching Tess' life we begin to see that her destiny is nothing more or less than the colour red You'll want to make a list of all the times the colour red appears in the novel, from the roses Alec gives Tess, to the monstrous red threshing machine, to the shedding of blood. Divide these images into two groups- the positive, life-affirming ones and the negative, violent ones. Toward the conclusion of your paper, consider why Hardy uses the same colour to represent concepts as opposite as life and death, creation and destruction, love and hate. Discuss the importance of landscapes and environments in Tess. Hardy weaves imagery around the colours C. red and white There are two ways to approach this question. You can either write about Hardy's view of nature and man's place in it; or you can discuss how nature in Tess reflects the characters' feelings. For the first approach, gather evidence from the novel about how Hardy sees nature. Remember to include his vision of nature

  • Word count: 2216
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Tess of the D'urbervilles - How far do you agree that Tess is responsible for herown suffering?

From your reading of the novel How far do you agree that Tess is responsible for her own suffering? Tess Of The D'urbervilles was written in 1891 where Tess lived in a male dominated society where money gave you power. Having read the novel, Tess has come across as a very confusing character. Many things happen to her, some of which she is responsible for and some that are due to fate. I will be addressing both sides of the argument, given explanations and quotes and then I will make a conclusion of whether Tess is responsible for her own suffering or if other people had an effect on her life. During the novel we will see a difference in Tess's character and how different issues such as love have influenced her. In chapter 2 Hardy compares Tess with the surroundings of Marlott "The sun blazes down upon fields as large as to give an unenclosed character to the landscape. " An unenclosed character gives us the impression that something's hidden, not visible like Tess's character. Our first impressions of Tess is that she comes across as not a very confident character and Hardy helps us see this by painting a picture in our minds "landscape painter" and gives us strong knowledge of Tess. Tess helps out a lot around the house, as Tess's parents seem to be quite careless and unrealistic so she is left with all of the responsibility "Monday washing which had now as always

  • Word count: 1422
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Comparing two short stories -The Superstitious Man's Story by Thomas Hardy and Night Fears by L P Hartley.

Comparing Two Short Stories - The Superstitious Man's Story by Thomas Hardy and Night Fears by L P Hartley Thomas Hardy lived between 1840-1928. He was brought up in Higher Brockhampton in Dorset. New technological developments were appearing all over the country, like railways and development of industry. As these wonders hadn't reached his part of the country yet, they still believed in country folk traditions and superstitions. Thomas Hardy liked to use these superstitions in his writings. The background to The Superstitious Man's Story is about a man who is travelling home on a stagecoach. He's been away 25 years and while travelling, is being told stories by the country folk. L P Hartley (1895-1972) was a well-off child as his father was a solicitor. He was educated at Harrow and Oxford. He liked to deal with the difference between reality and what people think is reality. He also liked using symbols in is stories. The Night Fears story is set after World War One when fewer people believed in ghosts, but what was scaring people was what was in their own minds. A scientist, Freud, was a psychologist and he had shown that such fears and paranoia could come from within us. The mood of the start of The Superstitious Man's Story is very unsettling as it tells you that this is going to be a ghost story. "You could feel when he came near'ee". "There seemed to

  • Word count: 1693
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Discuss the author`s perception of women in two of the short stories you have read.

Discuss the author`s perception of women in two of the short stories you have read. Back in the 1800s women had it pretty rough compared to men. There were poor women working in the cotton and woolen mills for 12 to 16 hours daily. Many lived six to a room and two to a bed in company boarding houses and were paid 2 pounds a week. Women were not permitted to give evidence in court, or have the right to speak in public before an audience. When a woman married, her husband legally owned all she had, including her earnings, her clothes and jewellery, and her children. If he died, she was entitled to only a third of her husband's estate. So women couldn't really be their own person, they hold little independence. Is it still like this today? Strange as it may seem, the family roles have not changed much in today's society. While women have more opportunities in home based employment, the traditional roles of women are still quite evident. They are still the caring provider and nurturer of young children, the comforter for the crying child and the feminine presence of the household. While the husband's role has changed into taking more part in household chores and the cooking and cleaning up responsibilities, they are still considered to be the head of the household in some families. But nowadays women and men should be pretty much equal. Women are allowed to vote, and they can

  • Word count: 2116
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Compare 'After the First Death' with Far From the Madding crowd,' with special consideration of each author's style and characterisation.

Compare 'After the First Death' with Far From the Madding crowd,' with special consideration of each author's style and characterisation. I have Recently read two books. The first was Thomas Hardy's novel set in the English counrty side during the nineteenth centuary. It told me a story about the arrival of Bathsheba Everdene in the village of Weatherbury to work a large, dilapidated farm that she inherited. In consequent of her inheritence she met a dashing young cavalry officer whom she found herself infanuated with; and also of her growing temptuous realtionship with the shepard-farmer, Gabriel Oak, whom she ends up marrying. The second novel was Robert Cormier, terroist act in America during the twentieth century, upon a bus full of small children and a vunerable high school cheer leader. She story contains not only fear and heroism but a psychological drama of ordinary people who are confronted with extrodinary events. It is in this essay that I am to compare each novel noting there simularities, even though they seem very different, and there extreme differences. Thomas Hardy's Far From the Madding Crowd is a political and common cultural novel. It contains a great deal of detail allowing each reader to create a unique interpretation of the scenes described. He has used omnicient 3rd person narative and a simple chronolgical order. This makes the story easier to

  • Word count: 2509
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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'Far from the madding crowd' - Several natural catastrophes happen over the course of the novel; the dog’s driving the sheep off the cliff, the fire, the sheep’s feeding upon young clover, the storm - What role do these events play with respect

Several natural catastrophes happen over the course of the novel; the dog's driving the sheep off the cliff, the fire, the sheep's feeding upon young clover, the storm. What role do these events play with respect to the character of Gabriel? 'Far From the Madding Crowd' is a novel based in the fictitious rural county of Wessex. The book is based around Gabriel Oak, a hard-working, kind-hearted farmer who has become destitute, and the love of his life, Bathsheba Everdene. It goes on to explore the hardships that farmers in 19th century England faced and how these problems were over come by Gabriel. Bathsheba Everdene is introduced to us as a very attractive, pompous woman. She is also described as a flirt and is guilty of leading many men on. Throughout the book Farmer Oak is portrayed as the stronger character and is always coming to the rescue of his 'damsel in distress', Bathsheba. On many occasions he proves himself to be strong minded, trustworthy and knowledgeable about farming matters. In chapter five Gabriel's sheep are run off a cliff by his young sheep-dog. This has made him destitute and instead of seeing hatred we are shown Gabriel's compassion. On page 44 it says "his first feeling now was one of pity for the untimely fate of these gentle ewes and their unborn lambs". This showed me that though Gabriel had lost all his wealth he is still kind-hearted enough to

  • Word count: 1039
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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"The president of the Immortals had done his sport with Tess"

"The president of the Immortals had done his sport with Tess" In his novel Tess of the d'Urbervilles Thomas Hardy expresses his dissatisfaction, weariness, and an overwhelming sense of injustice at the cruelty of 'our' universal fate disappointment and disillusionment. Hardy puts out an argument that the hopes and desires of Men are cruelly saddened by a strong combination of fate, unwanted accidents, mistakes and many sad flaws. Although Tess is strong willed and is clearly educated emotionally and mentally she soon becomes a victim of 'fate'. Many people would say that Tess was just unlucky, "Had a stroke of bad luck," others would prefer to differ and argue that she has fallen into fates hands. In order to decide whether her story is one of bad luck or bad judgement we need to look into closer detail at her account. Tess is introduced to the readers as a pure and innocent young lady dressed all in white, which symbolizes virginity and purity, whilst her physical appearance suggests a form of innocence and naivety. Hardy proposes that maybe her innocence and purity comes from her lack of experience with people, love and danger. This can be seen when she is exposed to new and different environments and forces. Hardy also introduces class and status very early on, Tess comes from a lower class yet she can make herself seem in a higher status due to her education. Tess's

  • Word count: 2084
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Essay Question On Far from the Madding Crowd.

Essay Question On Far from the Madding Crowd Thomas Hardy suggests that in the mid-ninteenth century women were limited in their choice of jobs. Factory work was available in some areas but this meant working long, tiresome hours. They could also work for the rich, but for very little money. The term used for a woman who makes dresses is a seamstress. They spent their lives sewing for the rich ladies who wore smart dresses. In Far From the Madding Crowd the main character 'Bathsheba' is the proud owner of her inherited farm. She has maids, farm workers and shepherds working for her. She spends long hours of the day working in fields. She is a fortunate woman, very popular among the men but who clearly is unsure about life /love. Her character is affluent and enjoys a privileged lifestyle. In Wessex where the book was set it is very traditional, old fashioned (even some parts are today). The rural setting makes it relate to what the scenery was like, and enhances the atmosphere. At the time this book was written, health standards were very poor and there was no birth control. Illness was common, and people often had to cope for themselves. A woman was considered lucky if she was rich enough to employ a maid to care for her. There were no injections to prevent people against tetanus, common among farm workers. (It occurs when dirt is passed through a wound with a risk of

  • Word count: 692
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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One character I feel sympathy for is Miss Ada Moss from 'Pictures' by Katherine Mansfield

Short Stories Discuss why you can sympathise with certain characters One character I feel sympathy for is Miss Ada Moss from 'Pictures' by Katherine Mansfield. From the beginning of the story there are hints that indicate that Miss Moss is in difficult financial circumstances. Similarly one can see that she has not always lived like this as she says, 'I wonder why I always wake up so cold in the mornings now.' And she explains that this must be because she does not have a good hot dinner in the evenings any more. Miss Moss is a character dwelling in her successful past and has not realised that she no longer has what it takes to have further success. This is quite a strong statement especially when one considers that the story ends with her getting a job, but I believe this is one of very few to come and she will be lucky if this job lasts as there is no stability in her field of work. The show of self confidence and stability she puts on in public and often in private makes me feel further sympathy for her as she is a very unstable character. Two of the main events that have caused me to think this are: when she lies to her landlord about her getting a job, and the fact that she is desperate enough to audition for acting jobs although she is a contralto singer. I feel the utmost sympathy for the character of Eveline who is created by James Joyce. She is a weak minded

  • Word count: 784
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Tess of the Durbervilles

How did Thomas Hardy use description to portray Tess' emotions? Thomas Hardy has been a very successful writer. He was penalised for writing novels in which were not 'proper' at the time he wrote it. Tess of the D'Urbervilles was said to be 'pessimistic' and 'immoral' by critics of the 19th century. This meant Tess of the D'urbervilles was one of Hardy's last ever novels. The public at this time were clearly not ready for Hardy's abrupt style of writing. It was only later given the attention it deserved. Thomas Hardy wrote many other books such as Mayor of Casterbridge and Far from the Madding Crow. When criticised he turned towards poetry, and succeeded doing that as well as novels. He was born in 1940 in Upper Bockhampton, in Dorset. He was a lover of music and had a good education thanks to his parents, and quit doing architecture to keep writing thanks to his wife, Emma Gifford. Hardy was a very opinionated man, and in his twenties lost his religious faith. This was not uncommon as Charles Darwin's 'origin of species' speech caused many people to turn their backs on the bible's teachings, and turn towards science, the more believable view. His own thoughts of the suffering in the world meant Hardy could no longer believe there was a loving God. Local ways were strongly kept in Dorset, but in 1847 the introduction to the railway mean town and country gradually started to

  • Word count: 3154
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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