The Irony of Tess’s Mobility in Tess of the d’Urbervilles

Abstract

The aim of this paper is not so much concerned with defining characters in terms of their psychological essence as with decoding linguistic signs of Tess of the d’Urbervilles mainly through a semiological analysis. The irony of repetition in Tess’s mobility is examined as repetition constitutes an intrinsic feature of Tess’s mobility and the plot of the novel insists on the idea of repetition or doubling, making the idea structural to its text. It is all along stressed that firstly, Tess moves around endlessly in the universe whirling in predetermined dance; secondly, her pain comes to prominence as she is in the process of becoming whereas society is locked in established authority; thirdly, Tess and society come to blows at every point of her life, which brings a cry of anguish across her life, a cry that cannot be easily answered; last but not least, by no means are her desires and aspirations fulfilled and this existential quandary of her life brings about a strong sense of pathos and yet Hardy ultimately raises tragic Hope through a detailed look at the worst vision of life.