Tess deserved a Mr. Darcy. I felt SO bad for her in this book, even though she was too innocent and easily swayed for my taste.
It just make me think, I would have been so happy if Tess had a Mr. Darcy in this book, lol. I'm such a romantic. And Lizzie Bennet would have destroyed both Alec and Angel. :)
Yeah maybe... but Mr Darcy would've never falled for her... she's just not strong enough of a character... don't get me wrong...I like Tess, but she is nothing like Elizabeth Bennet...
"Cause all things are equal when it comes to love..."
Several people on this board have criticized Tess for not having a strong enough character.
But after rape at 16 and the death of your baby; being blamed and made to feel ashamed by your family, neighbors and society at large; and then losing the love of your life and only hope for happiness because of all that... how strong would you be?
Yes, I agree that Tess should have told Angel about her past right away. But she was only 19 or 20 years old and her mother, who she looked to for guidance, convinced her not to reveal her secret. She tried to tell Angel several times, but bad luck and bad timing interfered.
She then chose to toil away at backbreaking labor in slave-like conditions instead of appealing to her absent husband's parents - which shows not only physical strength but strength of will.
And in the end, she chose the happiness and security of her family (in lowering herself to become Alec's mistress) over her own happiness. This is a very mature, selfless move on her part, though some may see it as weakness and succumbing to Alec.
I think all this shows a very strong character in Tess, and I wonder how Lizzie Bennett would have handled those ordeals herself. Poor Tess just got dealt a bad deal in life, and she finally couldn't take it. How many of us wouldn't have snapped after years of being neglected, used and abandoned by everyone important in your life?
PS: Sorry if I sound angry, I'm just impassioned!
...rolling downhill like a snowball headed for hell...
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Ludieludes - how did you like it? I mean, besides being angry and depressed. Did you actually enjoy the film?
It was pretty upsetting to me, but I loved it. It packed a huge emotional punch, that's for sure.
...rolling downhill like a snowball headed for hell...
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Bunnymasterz,
That's exactly how I feel about the character of Tess. I really admire her strength and person. She's my favorite literary character, for sure. Thanks for taking the time to write out your views (which happen to be mine as well!)
Or...I just shoot you - "baby."
- Special Agent Dana Scully
I agree with your analysis, Bunnymonsterz. Frankly, you can't even compare Lizzie Bennet to Tess, because Austen's work is completely different from Hardy's. No offense to Austen (because I love her books as well), but most of her heroines don't deal with such difficult circumstances (at least in comparison to Tess) and they all get their happy ending.
Normal is not something to aspire to, it's something to get away from.
I just watched the movie today and I'm sitting here speechless. My wife is upset with Tess for killing Alec, who she believed was far better of a person than Angel. I agree, I dispised Alec for forcing himself on her when she was 16, but at least he repented of his past actions, and tried to make things right, or at least as right as they could be. At the end, I can't throw stones at him because I have too many I need to use to throw at Angel.
I'm definitely not an Angel fan because I believe his actions and words precipitated all the mess that happened to Tess after he dumped her and went to Brasil. Angel could not forgiven Tess, as she forgave him by the way, and then treated her like a disease. I get the impression he did not write to her at all and truly abandoned her. I'm not sure how long he was away but I get the impression is was close to two years.
As for Tess, I love that poor girl and feel very very sad in the way it all ended for her. She had no business killing Alec so I will make no excuses for that, but Angel was right....it is all his fault. Too bad he couldn't have been hanged instead. And yes, I too was distressed that Angel could not even give Tess the one last hope she wanted to carry with her- that they would see each other in Heaven. Yes, I know Angel had no faith in God, but couldn't he have done it for her? Yes, very selfish Angel.
Finally, awesome awesome movie. Phew, I'm exhausted.