Tess of the d'Urbervilles
A Pure Woman (Illustrated)
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- $1.99
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- $1.99
Publisher Description
Hardy's calls Tess ' a pure woman' , which she remains even after her seduction by a rich relative, her work as a dairy maid, her romance and marriage with Angel Clare, her abandonment by her husband on the wedding night, her misfortunes and hardships which send her back to the arms of her seducer, the turn of the repentant husband, her murderr of the seducer in a fit of frustrated rage, and finally her arrest and subsequent hanging. A malignant fate seems to pursue her right from the beginning; yet she remains loving , generous and innocent unaware of evil.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Anna Bentinck ratchets up the melodrama for this full-blooded reading of Hardy's classic a staple of high-school English classes everywhere. Students desperate to penetrate Hardy's notoriously slow masterpiece should turn to Bentinck, who gives it an intense emotional coloring. She makes Hardy sound like a brother to the Bront sisters: passionate and brooding. Bentinck alternates between a crisp, precise narrative voice that sounds like Helen Mirren, and Tess's own voice, quavering, shallow and meek. Bentinck retains her composure throughout, and her assured performance may be a welcome rescue for struggling 11th graders across the country.