I am mad at Tess too and some scattered opinions
Posted by Constanza on October 01, 1998 at 13:13:38:
In response to He's up there with Mrs. Norris..., written by Golda on October 01, 1998 at 12:03:19
] And while we blame everyone else on Tess' bad luck, I wonder if she didn't bring some of it on herself. She could have asked Angel's family for help, but she was too stubborn (or proud) to do it.
If had been in her place I would have taken Alec at his word and accepted the money as payment for past grievances and damages sustained. There was no need for her to go with him. And she was too proud to ask Angel's parents for money, yet she is not so proud that she won't become Alec's mistress. When she was about to accept, I felt like shaking some sense into her! Stupid stupid girl! This second time she had no excuses and for all of Angel's faults, he was her husband and she was cheating!
I don't know, perhaps it was some self-destructive wish in her... or that she gave up to what she believed was her fate. But really, even if at that time she was angry at Angel and thought she would not see him again, she shouldn't have gone with Alec... it was a simply matter of self respect....
BTW, have you noticed that we don't "see" the most important things in the novel: the first rape/seduction; the second one; the murder...
In the first one, Hardy cuts the action just before and resumes it when Tess is leaving.
In the second, he cuts it when she is about to accept and resumes it with Angel looking for Tess.
And we learn of the murder through the landlady and Tess herself.
PS: would you believe that the cover blurb said that Tess' seduction would lead to murder... if that is not telling the whole story!
- Confused about the knife Patricia R. 20:16:56 10/01/98
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- She lost it. Golda 13:46:27 10/02/98
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- She lost it. Golda 13:46:27 10/02/98
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- I hold Tess a little less responsible Chael 15:57:24 10/01/98
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- D'ya know what I think? Caroline 15:57:16 10/01/98
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