Alec D'urberville And Tess example essay topic

Fatalistic Coincidences Thomas Hardy uses fate as an underlying theme in his work Tess of the D'Urbervilles. Fate, or the concept of fatalism is the belief that for all actions or events that take place there is some controlling force that has power and superiority over everything. Fate is a primitive force that exists independently of human will or control. In Tess of the D'Urbervilles Hardy exhibits this concept in Tess, the immaculate young protagonist, who is constantly put into precarious situations that continuously question the inevitable command of fate on ones life. Throughout the novel the concept of fatalism is witnessed through coincidental events that create testing situations for the young Tess. Throughout the book the coincidental events that did not take place result in outcomes that would have been avoided if only a few more moments were added or something was done slightly differently.

An example of this is seen in the early stages of the book when Angel and his two brothers come to the town were Tess and her friends are dancing on the green. Angel, intrigued by the activity, chooses to dance, but he does not choose Tess, in fact he does not even notice her. Rather he "took almost the first that came to hand", this being only coincidental and by chance. If he had only to chosen Tess then, the two would have found one another at that point rather than later in the novel, thus avoiding their dreadful end. Hardy introduces Angel in this way so that later on in the book when Angel emerges again as Tess's husband, after the events involving Alec D'Urberville and Tess occur, it is apparent what could have been avoided if only the two had found each other that first day on the village green. Coincidence did not bring Tess and Angel together that day and life for the young Tess went on.

When Tess was sent away to live with her newly discovered relative, she was introduced to Alec D'Urberville, the son of Mrs. D'Urberville, the widow. Soon after their introduction Alec seduced the young Tess, forcing himself upon her while the two stayed in the woods for a short time. After only a short time Tess was not able to put up with the sorrows brought forth by Alec and was forced to return to her family. However, Tess was not received well by the people. In fact, she was seen as "sinner" by many of the town folk. Had Tess not been sent to the d'Urberville home, she would not have met Alec nor would she have bore his child out of wedlock and her life would have been completely different.

While working at the local dairy in her birthplace of Mar lott, Tess is finally introduced to Angel, a fellow employee at the dairy. The two fall in love but Tess is rather hesitant to become too involved due to her shady past. After many weeks spent together, Tess accepted the engagement to Angel, but before the two were to be married Tess wanted to inform Angel of her past. She wanted to "Declare the past to him by word of mouth she could not, but there was another way". She decided to write him a letter and slip it under his door.

Unfortunately Angel never received the letter and was never informed if Tess's history. This small event was of such fatalistic gravity that ultimately led to a tragic end for Tess. Due to the fact that Angel never received the letter, Tess was not able to tell him until after they were married. When Angel found out, he was devastated and the marriage was left at a halt at his discretion. After Tess and Angel had split apart, Angel left for Brazil. After he was gone for nearly a year, Tess's father became very sick and eventually died.

Soon after the death of her father, Tess became involved with Alec again primarily to provide her family a home and a sound financial foundation. It was only a short time after the marriage of Tess and Alec that Angel returned from Brazil. Tess being torn by the situation took action by killing Alec and pronouncing her true love to Angel. Tess, however, was executed just days after she killed Alec. The coincidence of Tess's father dying at just the right moment for Alec to marry her and Angel returning only a little after was a fate by pure coincidence. Once again coincidence and plain chance play fundamental roles in Tess's fate and caused her to determine her own fate by killing Alec.

For Tess coincidental acts of fate often forced her to deal with unfortunate circumstances. It could be said that Tess was fatalistically prone to put herself into fatalistic situations that result in severe repercussions over time. When Tess killed Alec, she put fate into her own hands and for once she was in control of something. Shortly after she killed Alec she, herself was hung for her retaliation, which demonstrates the concealed power of fate always having the upper hand.