Rating: 
Summary: A Heart-Breaker
Review: Thomas Hardy is a master craftsman. With the help of words that fit the sentences like a key into a lock, Hardy ensnares his readers like a spider traps a fly. Such is the power of Hardy's prose. "Tess of the d'Urbervilles: A Pure Woman", was published in 1891. It was one of the last -- and arguably the best -- novels from Hardy's pen. It's the story of Tess, a country girl in a fictitious English county,Wessex, and her tragic struggle against destiny. As somebody has already mentioned, Hardy has chosen the backdrops of the story with the same care with which he describes people: valleys and moors are also portrayed as if they too are characters of the novel. The Vale of Blackmoor, Tess's birthplace, is described as "an engirdled and secluded region, for the most part untrodden as yet by tourist or landscape painter", and "in which the fields are never brown and the springs never dry". The Flintocomb-Ash, the place where Tess was subjected to some very rough manual work, is painted as "a complexion without features, as if a face, from chin to brow, should be only an expanse of skin". And the place where Tess fell in love, the Vale of Froom, is "that happy green tract of land where summer had been liberal in her gifts." There are several tearjerkers in the novel but I found one moment particularly touching where Tess decides to baptize her illegitimate baby herself. And when the baby -- named Sorrow -- dies, Hardy becomes a little bitter: "Poor Sorrow's campaign against sin, the world, and the devil was doomed to be of little brilliancy - luckily perhaps for himself, considering his beginning". To put forth the case of an unwed mother so passionately in "Tess of the d'Urbervilles" was something of a stir in the English society of late nineteenth century, which was so obsessed with feminine virginity. The novel received some severe criticism initially, which ultimately forced Hardy to stop writing novels and concentrate on poetry.
Rating:
Summary: At Talbothays Dairy
Review: There really isn't much I can add to what has already been said about this wonderful Thomas Hardy novel. One of the things that really struck me about Tess was the importance of setting and how Hardy relates Tess's emotional state to the setting in which she finds herself. The contrasting settings of Talbothays Dairy and Flintcomb-Ash seem to represent the opposing forces in Tess's own life. At Talbothays, the air is "clear, bracing and ethereal," the river flows like the pure River of Life," and the atmosphere "set up (Tess's) spirits wonderfully." For Tess, the valley where the dairy is located is akin to Paradise and she feels an emotional high while she is there. In the dairy, itself, the milkers form "a little battalion of men and women," often "singing songs to entice the cows to produce milk." Everyone works together to bring about a common goal, a common good. At Talbothays, Tess is able to escape the pressures and prejudices of Victorian England. She is at the peak of happiness in her life and falls in love and marries the intellectual and difficult Angel Clare. It is when her marriage to Angel fails, that Tess moves to the dreary and desolate Flintcomb-Ash. Flintcomb-Ash is in direct contrast to Talbothays. There is not a single "green pasture," nor anything besides "fallow and turnips everywhere" at the "starve-acre place." Here, Tess reaches a new emotional low and her heart is as empty and dark as the setting in which she finds herself. In contrast to the camaraderie at Talbothays, at Flintcomb-Ash, "nobody come near (Tess)" as she stands "enshrouded in her uniform" working "hour after hour." The other workers at Flintcomb-Ash do not fare much better and most are kept busy in the fields in order to earn enough money to simply survive. There is no time for friendship in this place. Obviously, Hardy was a master at description and the use of setting to emphasize the emotional state of his characters, Tess in particular. Although this book is a masterpiece of sensual language, Tess is also a wonderful example of the use of contrasting settings to convey strong emotional states in a way that mere words alone never could. Tess is a book that should not be overlooked by anyone.
Rating:
Summary: Society, love, and the nastiness of fate
Review: Having just finished this book a mere few hours ago the pain of it is fresh in my mind, but I'm sure it will distract me for weeks, such is the intensity of this tragedy. The only other novel of Hardy's I have ever read - Jude the Obscure - was a good book, stable and interesting, though not compelling until it's heart-wrenching twist three quarters of the way through the book. It was, in essence, more a social commentary, so it was with some surprise that I absorbed the constant emotion and passion that was this book. The basic storyline is as follows: Tess Durbeyfield, a young woman of a poor country family, is sent to visit her rich cousin, Alec d'Urbeville, after learning of her (perhaps mythical) relation to the ancient family which bears his name. In the obscure randomness that fate casts over life, innocent Tess is then pursued by perhaps the only man she could never tolerate (Alec), who is as his most evil in the early parts of the book. At Alec's house Tess works as a keeper to the poultry and is assaulted by Alec's constant sexual attentions until finally (and this is suggested rather than explained), exhausted and numb, she submits to intercourse with him. She later gives birth to a baby, whom she names Sorrow, who soon dies; and then meets a man she had glimpsed once years before at a dance: Angel Clare. Working together at a milking farm, they become drawn to each other despite Tess's unwillingness to incite the attentions of any man. Their love for each other grows but Tess knows that she dare not enter into marriage considering her past and a society that is both ludcrously religious and prejudiced. The strength of her love finally wears her down and they wed. However, on that very night she confesses her past, and is cruelly thrown aside by Clare, who now begins to view her as an impure woman separate to the Tess he had always loved (despite his past containing a similar history). After suffering years of solitutde and hardship, Tess finally gives up on Clare and falls in the way of Alec d'Urbeville again, relying upon him for the care of herself and her family. Sick and wasted, Clare eventually realizes the mistake he has made in casting Tess aside and finds her at d'Urbeville's mansion: too late. This brings the story to its close where greater tragedy ensues. The book was brilliant in its emotive persuasion and its depiction of Tess, who is impossible to not feel for, and, indeed, love. The misfortunes of her life are never self-inflicted, and we are left to wonder at the end at the awful nature of a world that would bring such sorrow upon one person. Tess is wonderful, stoic, and pure in her unyielding love for Clare; d'Urbeville is horrible in his initial portrayal as the villain who will singlehandedly destroy Tess's life, though is perhaps a little less repulsive at the end as one understand's the depths of his feeling for her; and Clare is the one who holds in his hands the ability to restore all past wrongness and find joy himself, but tragically fails to do so because of pride and convention. Overall, there were only two problems I had with the storyline: the first being Tess's succumbing to Alec's sexual persuasion in the beginning - if we are to believe that she is repulsed so many times by Alec's advances so completely and bodily, how are we to believe that she so easily concedes in one (unmentioned) incident? Her strength is greater than that. And the second is one which has been mentioned by another reviewer here: the ending, where a minor, unimportant character is introduced as a means through which to resolve everything, where in fact she is incapable of doing so, since we know nothing about this character, and can therefore put no faith in her. Despite these minor quibbles the whole of the book, with its engaging plot and brilliant prose, is worth more than the sum of its parts, with the pain of lost love being the principle effect one experiences long after the reading is over. Tess is beautiful.
Rating:
Summary: "Tess" is one of the greatest novels in the English language
Review: I recently read Tess of the D'Urbervilles and I must say that it has had a large impact opon me. I really love Thomas Hardy's work. Especially Far From the Madding Crowd. But, to be honest with you, I think that everyone should read Tess because it shows you a side of an unfortunate girl's life. It also depicts many harsh realities that form that thing we call life.
Rating: 
Summary: Not One of My Favorites
Review: I will admit that I read this for an advanced high school English class last year, making me one of those notorious 'immature high school reviewers.' However, I'm an English major, and I try to give each book an equal chance and see how they fared in the end. Well, here is Tess: I'm a reader who minds terribly when realism is outweighed by drama and romance. It sounds terrible, I know, but I prefer realism, and become frustrated when there's too much drama and love in a book. 'Too much' is a matter of opinion, of course, but in my opinion, Tess contains too much. It begins to sound overly-Victorian. One bad, dramatic thing after another takes place, and each occurrence seems forced, as though Hardy pushed it onto the paper to further the development of another bad thing. You could say that this is called *plotting*, but it comes across to me as bad plotting. Remember, this is coming from a person who prefers Edith Wharton and John Dos Passos as their recreational reading. Drama and fiction are all okay in my book, but too much of anything is bad. Hardy needs more moderation, in my opinion. So to finish fairly, I'll say that Tess of the D'Urbervilles makes a great dramatic Victorian novel with a beautiful tragic message. However, readers like myself, who are frustrated by large amounts of romance,tragedy,and beauty, will agree that two stars is a perfect rating.
Rating:
Summary: I CAN'T BELIEVE IT
Review: I was not too impressed by Jude The Obscure, but I decided to try reading another Hardy novel, since it was told to me that Jude was not the best representation of his writing. How true!After finishing Tess, I'm now of a totally different opinion. I have to say, the man was a genius. His prose is a joy to read, he actually made me enjoy sappiness & melodrama, and everything was just perfect. There was even some satire and little jokes throughout, so as to give the reader a break from the tragic plot. And to all those who say it was not realistic or came off as overly dramatic: it was supposed to be that way. It was written in a style not unlike that of a Greek tragedy, myth, legend...whatever you want to call it. Get it? Got it? Good.
Rating: 
Summary: This book will give you a lot to think about.
Review: One of my friends recommended that I read Thomas Hardy, but she cautioned me: "Thomas Hardy isn't for everyone." I discovered while reading "Tess of the D'Urbervilles" that what she may have meant is that Thomas Hardy didn't write light works to be read and then forgotten about. Through this book, Hardy addresses issues that society in his day didn't want to face: the fate of the farm worker in the increasingly industrialized society, predjudices held against minority groups, and the inequality of women. All of this is not to say that this is a dry or boring work -- "Tess" is gripping, riveting, and almost overpowering in its emotional appeal. One cannot read this book without becoming involved in Tess's situation. I have never been so angry with a character in a book as I was with Angel Clare at a certain point in the novel. So, in conclusion, "Tess of the D'Urbervilles" isn't for everyone. . . but it should be for every thinking person, everyone who isn't afraid to face issues, think deeply about them, and apply them to life.
Rating:
Summary: A Travesty Against All Higher Sensibility
Review: This book is a rarity - for despite that I found it ridiculous, I actually read through it! (I was in one of my more curious moods, and had made the decision to humour myself.) Quite over-rated, this. Tess was unfortunately a victim of Thomas Hardy's adoration. Upon her pedestal she perpetuated her irksome fate most unrealistically. She and the two men entangled in her folly float on some nonsensical cloud of bliss. They never touch the earth. All through the course of this story, Tess is a leaf floating along on a windy cloud. It is not until the end that she takes a ludicrously uncharacteristic stand against her fate. Infuriating, that. One may only conclude that she has no soul. She is but the spiritless embodiment of Hardy's ultimate tragic heroine.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent, timeless analysis of human life and nature
Review: Please ignore the immature high-school student reviews and understand that this book is a masterpiece. Hardy analyzes the relationship between human desire and society's mores to an unprecendented degree. The characters are multi-faceted and very life-like. Hardly aptly avoids the mistake of creating mere carciatures of the pure woman, idealistic intellectual, and spoiled playboy. Moreover, his use of religious allusion is excellent although this may alienate the modern, secular reader. And perhaps this is the problem with some readers. Finally, Tess is an admirable and strong woman who had difficult circumstances. How many people would act as admirably in her circumstance? Not many! The reviewers that criticize her actions should realize this and that they ignore one of Hardy's key points: Don't be so judgemental! This is one of the best books I have read and believe me, I have read a lot of the "good" books.
Rating:
Summary: Hardy's Best
Review: If you've never read a book by Thomas Hardy and only want to read one, it should be this one. This is one of the few classics that can still grip the modern reader, enchant, outrage and enlighten him. It often amazes me that it was not a woman who wrote this novel, for Tess is such a many-faceted and non-standardized character that the men in the novel just fade into the background.
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