Who is the author of 'Tess of the d'Urbervilles'?

"Tess of the d'Urbervilles: A Pure Woman Faithfully Presented" is a novel by the English writer Thomas Hardy, first published in 1891.

About the novel:

It tells the tragic story of Tess Durbeyfield, a young woman from a poor rural family in Wessex.

Her father learns that the family may be descended from the noble d'Urberville family, and Tess is sent to claim kinship with a rich family of that name. There she is exploited by Alec d'Urberville.

She later marries Angel Clare, who abandons her when he learns of her past.

In the end, Tess kills Alec and is executed.

The novel criticises the double standards of Victorian society towards women, social class and religion, and was controversial when it was published because of its sympathetic portrayal of Tess.

About Thomas Hardy (1840-1928):

• He was born in Dorset, England, and trained as an architect before becoming a writer.
• Most of his novels are set in "Wessex", an imaginary region based on south-west England.

His other major novels include:

• "Far from the Madding Crowd" (1874).
• "The Return of the Native" (1878).
• "The Mayor of Casterbridge" (1886).
• "Jude the Obscure" (1895): its harsh criticism of marriage and religion caused such controversy that Hardy stopped writing novels and wrote only poetry afterwards.
• He was also a major poet; his poems include "The Darkling Thrush" and "Drummer Hodge".

Other famous English novelists:

• Charles Dickens: "Oliver Twist", "David Copperfield", "Great Expectations".
• George Eliot: "Middlemarch", "Silas Marner", "The Mill on the Floss".
• H. Lawrence: "Sons and Lovers", "The Rainbow", "Lady Chatterley's Lover".
• William Makepeace Thackeray: "Vanity Fair".

Why not the other options?

• ✗Charles Dickens wrote "Great Expectations" and "Oliver Twist".
• ✗George Eliot wrote "Middlemarch".
• ✗H. Lawrence wrote "Sons and Lovers" and "The Rainbow".