# XXIX explained — Tess of the d’Urbervilles

> Chapter companion for Tess of the d’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy.

## What happens

Angel Clare persists in his courtship of Tess, who struggles with her secret past. The dairy workers discuss Jack Dollop's marriage to a widow who concealed her history, a story that deeply affects Tess. Despite her repeated refusals, Tess's love for Angel weakens her resolve, and she eventually agrees to marry him.

## Themes in this chapter

### Love and Marriage

Angel's persistent courtship and Tess's internal conflict highlight the tension between romantic love and the societal expectations of marriage.

### Female Purity and Double Standards

The story of Jack Dollop and the widow underscores the double standard that punishes women for concealing their past, while men face little consequence.

### Suffering and Resilience

Tess's silent anguish as the others laugh at the widow's plight reveals her own suffering and the burden of her secret.

## Character check-ins

### Tess Durbeyfield

Torn between her love for Angel and her guilt over her past, Tess repeatedly refuses his proposals but eventually yields.

### Angel Clare

Persistent in his wooing, Angel presses Tess for a promise of marriage, believing her hesitations are merely coyness.

### Dairyman Crick

Tells the story of Jack Dollop's marriage to a widow, which triggers Tess's anxiety about revealing her own history.

### Marian

One of the dairymaids who comments on the widow's situation, contributing to Tess's distress.

### Izz Huett

Agrees with Marian that the widow should have told the truth or refused the man.

### Retty Priddle

Spasmodically insists the widow should have refused the man, adding to the chorus of opinions.

## Key lines

> What was comedy to them was tragedy to her; and she could hardly bear their mirth.

The others found the story amusing, but for Tess it was a painful reminder of her own situation, and she struggled to endure their laughter.

_Highlights Tess's isolation and the contrast between her inner turmoil and the dairy workers' lightheartedness._

> She loved him so passionately, and he was so godlike in her eyes; and being, though untrained, instinctively refined, her nature cried for his tutelary guidance.

Tess adored Angel and saw him as almost divine; her innate refinement, despite her lack of education, made her long for his protection and direction.

_Illustrates Tess's idealization of Angel and her emotional vulnerability._

> This question of a woman telling her story—the heaviest of crosses to herself—seemed but amusement to others.

The burden of confessing her past was the greatest trial for Tess, yet others treated it as a trivial or entertaining matter.

_Emphasizes the theme of female suffering and the lack of empathy from society._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/tess_of_the_d_urbervilles_se/chapters/xxix
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/tess_of_the_d_urbervilles_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/tess_of_the_d_urbervilles_se/chapters