Lesson 4.1.1.11

4.1.1.11 Tess of the D'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy Quiz: AQA English Literature A, Unit 1

20 questions

Written by Revision Ninja · Last reviewed 11 October 2026

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Lesson 4.1.1.11, Tess of the D'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy: 20 multiple choice questions for the AQA English Literature A (7712), Unit 1: Love through the ages, written with Revision Ninja.

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The 20 questions

  1. Who is the heroine of Tess of the D'Urbervilles?

    • Tess Durbeyfield, the eldest daughter of a poor family
    • Izz Huett, a fellow dairy worker at Talbothays
    • Liza-Lu, the younger sister of the heroine
    • Angel Clare, the idealistic son of a clergyman

  2. Who seduces or assaults Tess, which leads to the death of her first child?

    • Angel Clare, the idealistic son of a clergyman
    • Mr Durbeyfield, Tess's father and a poor carter
    • Alec d'Urberville, a wealthy man who pursues her
    • Farmer Groby, the employer who dismisses her

  3. Which character is the idealistic son of a clergyman who rejects Tess after learning of her past?

    • Mr Durbeyfield, Tess's father who is a carter
    • Alec d'Urberville, who is a wealthy landowner
    • Parson Tringham, the antiquary who teaches the family
    • Angel Clare, who marries Tess and then leaves her

  4. The novel is set in which fictional region of England?

    • Cornwall, a peninsula in the far south-west
    • Wessex, based on the south-west of England
    • Northumbria, a kingdom of the far north
    • Mercia, a kingdom of the English midlands

  5. What is the subtitle of Tess of the D'Urbervilles?

    • The Fall of a Noble Dynasty
    • The Return of the Native Family
    • A Tale of Two Lovers in Wessex
    • A Pure Woman Faithfully Presented

  6. Which location is the dairy where Tess works and meets Angel Clare?

    • Stonehenge, the prehistoric monument on the plain
    • Talbothays Dairy, in the lush Froom valley
    • Marlott village, where the family lives
    • Flintcomb-Ash Farm, on the bleak downs

  7. Why is the novel's subtitle ironic or open to debate?

    • It describes Angel's innocence as a young man
    • It is a direct quotation from a legal document of the court
    • It refers to a royal title granted to the family
    • It depends on whether Tess is judged by Victorian standards of purity or by her own character

  8. Which element of the novel is linked to Tess's social position and the fate of the poor?

    • the discovery of gold in the hills near Wessex
    • the founding of a new university in London
    • the rise of the Clare family to a peerage
    • the Durbeyfields' decline after they learn of their supposed noble descent

  9. How does Tess's life end in the novel?

    • She dies in childbirth at the dairy at Talbothays
    • She emigrates to America with her sister Liza-Lu
    • She marries Angel and lives happily in London
    • She is executed after killing Alec d'Urberville

  10. Where is Tess arrested near the end of the novel?

    • Avebury, a stone circle in the north
    • Salisbury Cathedral, in the city square
    • Glastonbury Tor, a hill near the coast
    • Stonehenge, where she has been resting

  11. Which technique in Hardy's narrative conveys the pressure of fate on Tess?

    • a detective-style investigation into a crime
    • a chorus of characters who sing the moral at the end
    • a comic dialogue between servants in the kitchen
    • coincidence and misfortune, which suggest a hostile universe

  12. What is the significance of Angel Clare's reaction to Tess's past?

    • He is entirely faultless and kind to Tess in every respect
    • He forgives others' errors but cannot forgive Tess, exposing a double standard
    • He is a comic character who makes no moral judgement at all
    • He is a judge in a court of law who sentences her

  13. Which theme does Hardy most consistently develop in the novel?

    • the triumph of science over religious belief in the village
    • military heroism in the Crimean War and its aftermath
    • the discovery of new continents and trading routes
    • the conflict between individual desire and the rigid social codes of the age

  14. Which statement best describes Hardy's tone in the novel?

    • sympathetic to Tess while critical of the social injustice that destroys her
    • entirely comic and light-hearted in its treatment of Tess
    • neutral, with no moral position on the events of the story
    • hostile to Tess from the first chapter to the last

  15. Why is the Durbeyfields' social aspiration important to the plot?

    • It allows Angel to inherit a title from his father
    • It makes Tess a schoolteacher in the local village
    • It sends Tess to claim a false connection with the d'Urbervilles, starting her misfortune
    • It helps Tess buy a large estate in the countryside

  16. Which feature of the rural setting is central to the novel's representation of labour?

    • naval battles and long sea voyages across the Atlantic
    • royal court life and ceremonial occasions in London
    • agricultural work and the exploitation of labour that shape the characters' lives
    • urban factories and mechanical production in the towns

  17. Which character's view of Tess as a victim of circumstance is shown most fully in the later chapters?

    • Alec d'Urberville, who is never punished for his conduct
    • Mr Durbeyfield, who is a respected magistrate in the village
    • Tess herself, who accepts responsibility but refuses to be defined by her past
    • Parson Tringham, who is a confirmed atheist and sceptic

  18. Which question best supports an evaluation of Hardy's treatment of fate?

    • Is Tess a skilled cook in the household kitchen?
    • Is the Clare family wealthy enough to buy a farm?
    • Are Tess's disasters caused by her choices, by social forces, or by a hostile universe?
    • Does the novel mention a particular kind of bird in the countryside?

  19. What is the family name Tess is born with?

    • Huett, the name of a dairy colleague
    • Clare, the name of her husband's family
    • Durbeyfield, the name of her family
    • d'Urberville, the name the family falsely claims

  20. What is the name of Tess's first child, who dies in infancy?

    • Joy, the child of a neighbour in Marlott
    • Sorrow, the baby who dies after a short life
    • Liza-Lu, her younger sister in the village
    • Hope, the name of a girl from the dairy

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