...Explore how Hardy presents Alec D'Urberville In Tess of the D'Urbervilles, Alec is perceived to be the villain as he is the catalyst for the destruction of Tess's life after he rapes her. Even though certain acts convey Alec as a villainous character, others suggest Alec is not wholly evil in the novel. The first presentation of Alec the reader receives is when Tess travels to Trantridge to claim kin after the death of the family horse, Prince. The description of Alec's appearance upon his first arrival in the novel is rather appealing to the reader, but before any description of his appearance, the reader is given an automatic feeling of threat by this character as he firstly appears from the darkness of an outdoor tent “A figure came forth from the dark triangular door of the tent, it was that of a young man smoking”. Appearing from the dark makes him look mysterious and the act of smoking is seen as a devilish activity, suggesting that Alec is devil like. Alec is further described as a dark character through the dark imagery of his features such as “swarthy complexion” which in the context of the novel, was also considered to be a feature of a lustful and sexual nature. Hardy also describes Alec as having a “well groomed moustache” which is Hardy perception of the typical stereotypical villain and being “well groomed” also suggests to the reader that Alec wealthy which possibly suggests that he is controlling over those lesser to himself. Arguably the most effective...
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...Literature Tess of the D'Urbervilles Male Dominance Male Dominance in Tess of the D’urbervilles The Victorian era, as described by Professor of History and Women's & Gender Studies Nancy Reagin in her essay “Victorian Women: the Gender of Oppression”, witnessed the ideology of separate spheres in which society viewed men as independent and reasonable while viewing women as passive, dependent on men, emotional, and submissive. Men were given the governing role in which they would dominate society due to their ability to make rational decisions while women were expected to unquestionably fill the social roles that men decided for them, and those roles usually revolved around a woman’s duties as a mother and a wife. In marriage, a woman was expected to abide by the orders and views of her husband, and man and wife became one in terms of a woman’s rights, property, and identity. In Tess of the D’urbervilles, a book written in the Victorian Era, Hardy conveys this ideology of separate spheres in his portrayal of men and their dominance over women in society, primarily Tess. Their dominance is shown in how the men act as the masters of society, but it is also seen in how the women in Tess unquestionably view the men as the dominant gender. Often, the women are blindly influenced and act passively when interacting with male characters such as Alec and Angel. They are also seen to be very dependent on the men, and the men acknowledge that, for that is expected of a woman in that age...
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...happy to please someone as important as Henry.” However it was not the dispensation that caused concern, it was a text from Deuteronomy that claimed Henry was infact right in marrying Catherine as Deuteronomy claimed that if a mans brother dies and he and his wife are without child, then it is the brother’s role to raise his widow. This essentially proved Henry’s claim wrong, weakening his case. However, despite the opposition based on biblical teachings, this was not a large concern as Source 2 and 3 highlight, Wolsey... View Full Essay Join Now Please login to view the full essay... Essay's Statistics Submitted by: kirstymackinlay Date shared: 11/07/2012 02:21 PM Words: 904 Pages: 4 Save Paper Report this Essay Similar Documents Do You Agree With The View That The Main Reasons For Henry's Failure To Obtain The Annulment Of His Marriage In The Years 1525-29 Was The Determined Opposition Of Katherine Of Aragon? Do You Agree With The View That The Main Reason For Henry’s Failure To Obtain...
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