Tess of the D'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy Fiction Classics

<p><strong>Tess the eldest daughter of a poor carter in Marlott goes to work for the rich d'Uberville family where she becomes pregnant with the child of Alec the d'Uberville's son.</strong> This action makes her a fallen woman and leads to tragedy. Tess of the d'Urbervilles got mixed reception when it was published because it portrayed Tess sympathetically and challenged the prevailing sexual mores. A copy was burnt by the Bishop of Wakefield. Thomas Hardy was an English novelist short-story writer and poet. He destroyed the manuscript of his first unplaced novel but -- encouraged by mentor and friend George Meredith -- tried again. His important work took place in an area of southern England he called Wessex named after the English kingdom that existed before the Norman Conquest.</p>