How isTess seen to suffer inTess of the D'urbervilles'?

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How is Tess seen to suffer in Tess of the D’urbervilles’?

Tess undergoes immense suffering, throughout the whole novel.  This is very well displayed by Thomas Hardy’s excellent usage of language.  He expertly describes Tess’s actions and language.  Hardy also vividly describes what Tess feels and other people’s behaviour towards her.

The very first case of suffering starts when Tess had to get up extremely early in the morning to take the hives to market.  Tess had to light the lantern on the cart and drive to market.  Tess was exhausted.  This is the first example of physical suffering that Tess undergoes in the novel.  Tess was so tired that she actually fell asleep whilst driving the cart.  Tess was woken by a sudden jerk.  She realized that she had been asleep for some time and she had travelled a fair way down the road.  Tess found that the cart was on the wrong side of the road, and that the cart had stopped.  There was a low groaning sound coming from her horse, Prince.  He had been wounded very badly and as a result of this, he later died.

This is where Tess’s emotional suffering began.  Tess felt very upset and felt she was entirely to blame.  Her face was described as being ‘dry and pale’ and her little bother asked ‘is he gone to heaven?’ Tess regarded herself a murdereress.

The next case of suffering occurs when Tess meets Alec D’urberville for the first time.  Tess feels out place here, as she feels inferior to him.  Hardy shows this by describing Tess’s ‘sense of ludicrousness in her errand’ and he tells of how Tess is ‘in awe’ of Alec.  This makes Tess feel very uncomfortable.  Tess had gone to the D’urberville’s house to claim kin, as she belonged to a poor family and were seeking financial support and a better way of life.

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Tess feels very uneasy and uncomfortable when facing that situation, as she thinks that Alec D’urberville will look down on her because she is of a different class to him.  Tess was not too keen to go in the first instance and she was embarrassed to be telling him the reason that she had come.  She tells him how she feels ‘it is so very foolish.’ This is another example of Tess’s emotional suffering.

Following on from the first meeting, Tess had another encounter with Alec D’urberville.  This next meeting occurred near the home of Tess and her family.  A ...

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