She finally accepts, but is in constant turmoil. Strengthened in his convictions, he goes back and renews his proposal to Tess. She is afraid to tell him the details of her past.Īngel returns home briefly and finds that his brothers, who are becoming parsons or deans, have grown more narrow-minded and disapproving. Angel asks her to marry him, but Tess refuses, feeling that she is not worthy of marriage. All four women soon fall in love with him, but he chooses Tess and they begin a period of courtship. He is the son of a parson, but is at Talbothays to learn about farming methods.

She befriends three other girls, Izz, Retty, and Marian, and discovers that the man from the May-Day dance, Angel Clare, is also working there. She becomes a milkmaid at Talbothays dairy farm, and enjoys a time of contentment. She baptizes him herself, and names him Sorrow before he dies.Īfter a while Tess gets worn down by her community's judgment and decides to look for work elsewhere. Her baby soon gets sick, and Tess worries about his soul. She avoids the other townspeople out of shame. Tess then returns to Marlott, and later gives birth to Alec's child. When he returns he finds Tess asleep, and he rapes her. He gets lost in the woods and leaves to find the path. One night after a dance in the local town Alec tricks Tess into accepting a ride home with him. He gives her a job tending the fowls, and Tess feels that she can't refuse for her family's sake. d'Urberville, becomes infatuated with Tess and repeatedly tries to seduce her, but she rebuffs his advances. When Tess mistakenly causes the death of Prince, the family's horse, she feels guilty enough to try and “claim kin” from some wealthy d'Urbervilles nearby, unaware that they aren't actually related.Īlec, the libertine son of old, blind, Mrs. Although the d'Urbervilles have no wealth or power anymore, the Durbeyfields feel that this will improve their fortunes. Tess's family is very poor, but her father learns that he is descended from the d'Urbervilles, one of the oldest, noblest families in England. She first appears performing the May-Day dance, where she exchanges a meaningful glance with a young man named Angel Clare. Tess Durbeyfield lives in the rural village of Marlott in southwest England.

Tess D'Urberville by Thomas Hardy