Undoubtedly, Thomas Hardy's "Tess of the D'Urbervilles" largely resembles the archetypal Greek tragedy; evoking an overwhelming sense of pity/catharsis for the female protagonist. However, the constituents of the said “tragedy”; although essentially prevalent throughout, they are discordant in most of Hardy's novel. It is generally expected to be called a "Greek tragedy"; a number of elements must work in unison: the protagonist, although central to the plot, must remain emotionally detached, the plot driven by action; regardless of the thoughts and psychology of the central character and often, consequently, omitting the presence of a coherent narrative. Aristotle stated that tragedy, at its core, is "an imitation, not of men, but of action and life, of happiness and misery" – a plot in which the characters serve to purify the emotions of the spectators and create a center of empathy, in a tale driven by nothing more than the misfortune of fate, the cosmos and the Gods. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay However, discrepancies arise when examining the semantics of Hardy's novel: Tess's fate cannot be blamed on the fault of the Gods, nor the work of higher beings; Tess does not possess any credible form of hamartia, since the flaws that seem to denounce her recognition as a "virtuous being" are prevalent in all the other central characters: her "definition" of sexual impurity, almost satirically parallel to the acts of her "spiritually enlightened" husband. Thus, it is not through the Victorian prism of purity that Tess is assigned her hamartia; Tess's one and only fatal flaw is one that, ironically, coincides with Aristotle's theory of tragedy in the sense that it escapes her control: she is a woman. It is her gender that serves to condemn her. Hardy seems to invert the concept of tragedy, as, as opposed to the imitation of the joys and disappointments of life, Tess is used on an individual level to paint a bitter portrait of realism and blame the society that dictates so much melancholy. Rather than ridding the audience of their inner turmoil through a typically male protagonist; Hardy humanizes Tess's condition: men who embody the authority of God - the figures of Angel (symbolically symbolizing the hope of redemption for the fallen woman) and Alec (signifying unholy temptation) who dominate the girl's path. The cosmos and God, responsible for our misfortunes, are belittled on a very factual level: it is men who oppress her by ignoring their own defects and exacerbating hers; as it is ultimately judged by the ethical delineation of societies. In a sense, Hardy mirrors the ideology of Greek tragedy, insofar as, just like the awareness that God's perennial intervention relieves us of guilt for our destinies; the invisible construction of society with its judgments on sexuality, femininity, morality and status are entirely responsible for Tess's disappearance. Hardy propagates this concept of responsibility through the unorthodox addition of narrative throughout; often satirically mocking the notion that Tess is vilified by the Gods for her actions, pointing out that "Providence must have been asleep" by the time the girl's fate is determined by rape. Rather than being driven by action, Hardy speculates on the events that occur, the human testimony that punctuates the novel, suggesting that intervention and a divergence of fate are quite possible; just as, like the author, Hardy has the ability to manipulate and/or.