Tess of the d'Urbervilles
An intimate portrait of a woman, one of literature's most admirable and tragic heroines...Tess Durbeyfield knows what it is to work hard and expect little. But her life is about to veer from the path trod by her mother and grandmother. When her ne'er-do-well father learns that his family is the last of a long noble line, the d'Urbervilles, he sends Tess on a journey to meet her supposed kin—a journey that will see her victimized by lust, poverty, and hypocrisy. Shaped by an acute sense of social injustice and by a vision of human fate cosmic in scope, her story is a singular blending of harsh realism and poignant beauty. Thomas Hardy created in Tess not a standard Victorian heroine but a woman whose intense vitality shines against the bleak backdrop of a dying way of life. The novel shocked contemporary readers with its honesty and remains a timeless commentary on the human condition.
Themes & atmosphere
What you might want to know about Tess of the d'Urbervilles
The questions readers send us most often, answered without spoilers.
When her father learns the family may descend from a noble line, sixteen-year-old Tess Durbeyfield is sent to claim kinship with the wealthy d'Urbervilles. Her cousin Alec changes her life, and her later marriage.
Yes. Tess of the d'Urbervilles was first published in 1891 and is in the public domain. Free editions are available legally through Project Gutenberg, Standard Ebooks, and similar archives.
Yes. Notable adaptations include Roman Polanski's 1979 film Tess (winning three Academy Awards) and the 2008 BBC miniseries with Gemma Arterton. Multiple other films and adaptations exist.
Tess of the d'Urbervilles was written by Thomas Hardy, published in 1971 by Collector's Library.
Tess of the d'Urbervilles is 114 pages in standard print editions, though page counts vary slightly between hardcover, paperback, and large-print formats.
At an average reading pace of about 250 words per minute, Tess of the d'Urbervilles takes most readers about 2 hours to finish.
Tess of the d'Urbervilles is a standalone novel by Thomas Hardy, not part of a series.
Tess of the d'Urbervilles is available in hardcover, paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats from Amazon, Bookshop.org, ThriftBooks, and most major bookstores.