A key theme in both Charles Dickens' Great Expectations[1] and Thomas Hardy's Tess of the D'Urbervilles[2] is cruelty . Both authors treat this cruelty in such a way as to lay bare the flaws of a society in which the powerful, whether in terms of class, physical strength, or otherwise, prey on those who have no power. Both novels are examples of coming-of-age novels that focus on young characters, as Pip and Tess, come of age and become adults. As in the Bildungsroman, the theme of cruelty becomes increasingly important, as it is also used to highlight the effects of cruelty on the development and maturation of these children. Say no to plagiarism a custom essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essayOne of the major factors that influenced the distribution of power in the early 19th century was social class, a divisive force that remained even despite the growing forces of industrial modernity. In Great Expectations, the dominant example of the cruel treatment by the upper classes towards the lower classes is perhaps seen between the characters of Compeyson and Magwitch. Compeyson's cruelty, which forces Magwitch to behave as his "black slave"[3], culminates in his denial of guilt and charges against Magwitch when the two are arrested for their illegal activities. He uses Magwitch, who is labeled by Compeyson's defense counsel as "ill-bought"[4], as a scapegoat for his own mistakes. The depiction of this powerful, wealthy man's cruelty against a disproportionately poor and powerless man not only condemns Compeyson as a leading figure of the upper classes, but also expands into a condemnation of society as a whole. The means by which this is achieved is the portrayal of Compeyson not only as scapegoating Magwitch, but as if he were actually legally allowed to do so. His sentence reduction is not due to any real evidence in his favor, but simply to the observation that he is a "well bought" man[5] as a member of wealthy society. It is on this basis alone that the guilty Compeyson is “recommended to pity on account of good character and bad company”[6], while the much less guilty Magwitch “has been done with everything, well enough – except hanged”[7 ]. Dickens's depiction of the advantage of the upper classes at the expense of the lower classes successfully reflects the cruelty of judicial corruption and the wealth gap between rich and poor that was widespread during the Industrial Revolution in early 19th-century England. As the poor were exploited through hard work and the threat of cruelty, the rich took advantage of their position within the capitalist system to increase their economic gain. Kenneth Harris supports and emphasizes this as he argues that “the industrial revolution… had unleashed forces of greed, cruelty, and selfishness that had made society ugly in appearance and materialistic in outlook”[8]. Hardy's novel is equally charged with the theme of the lower classes being cruelly exploited for the benefit of the upper classes, albeit in a different way. Unlike Great Expectations' Compeyson, who uses Magwitch's unrewarded criminal labor for his own financial gain in the true spirit of the Industrial Revolution, Tess of the d'Urbervilles' Alec d'Urberville uses Tess's body for his own sexual profit and physicist. Kevin Swafford supports this idea of ​​class-based division and cruelty as he argues that “due to the very nature of the social structure and relationships created within thenarrative, Tess is essentially conceived and treated as property or potential exchange value”[9]. Indeed, the social structure he is referring to is that of capitalism with the same wealth gap present in the context of Great Expectations. However, in addition to depicting the cruelty of those who have power towards those who have none, Hardy also portrays a society in which the powerless will be cruel to others who are powerless in order to gain the power they lack. In Tess of the d'Urbervilles, we see Tess's father force Tess into the line of fire of the senseless desire of the spoiled and narcissistic Alec, in the hope of obtaining a title of recognition. Likewise, Great Expectations shows Pip, who is for the most part the moral center of the novel, as showing signs of the ability to be cruel to strive to reach the pinnacle of the contemporary capitalist system, while breaking Biddy's heart. and starts treating Joe like he's inferior to him. In this sense both novels reflect the developments of the industrial revolution. The social structure, while still defined largely by a wide class divide, began to lose its rigidity when it became possible for people to migrate between classes through means other than blood and birthright. In the case of Great Expectations, another group that is shown to inflict cruelty on the less powerful group is the adult on the child. As a coming-of-age novel, the novel focuses largely on the impact of a cruel and unjust society on the growth and coming of age of society's youngest members. In Great Expectations, Pip and Estella are the key examples of children who are victims of the cruelty of adults who abuse their power. The first is shown as having grown up in the shadow of the violence of his cruel sister, who vents her anger and discontent. on the physically smaller and weaker brother. The young Pip himself defines her as his "omnipotent sister"[10], outlining his defenselessness in the face of her intimidation. The latter suffers a different kind of cruelty, as it is psychological rather than physical. Miss Havisham adopts a poor, innocent little girl and distorts her perception of the world, other people, and her own emotions. Estella herself highlights the way in which her helplessness and innocence are exploited as she tells Pip that "[he] if [his] little wits had not been sharpened by their intrigues against [him], repressed and helpless – [she] he did”[11]. Nicolas Tredell supports the presence of adults who use their power to inflict cruelty because he defines the novel as a novel that "deals with the interaction of painful and vivid individual experience with particular types of social order in which adults have largely unchecked power over children"[ 12]. Indeed, Dickens uses these dynamics of guardianship of his characters' children to draw attention to the rampant exploitation of children and the lack of concern for the obvious child abuse in early 19th-century England Meanwhile, in Tess of the d'Urbervilles, young Tess is taken advantage of less because of her physical helplessness, but rather more because of her mental innocence. James Gibson highlights Alec's exploitation of Tess's childhood naivety as he argues that "he takes advantage of Tess's innocence and vulnerability, and such a relationship is seen by Hardy as entirely deplorable"[13]. Indeed, Hardy paints Alec as an unreasonably cruel character, allowing his basic sexual desires to override his morality, while conversely painting Tess as a much more humanized character as we see her suffer and understand the roots of her ultimate act of violence .particularly evident as Hardy asks "why on this beautiful feminine tissue, still practically snow-white, should such a path have been traced that it was destined to receive." This embodies the cruelty of Alec's destruction of Tess's virginity and innocence, as the “snow-white” canvas is horribly ruined by his sexual violence. Thus, Gibson's observation that Hardy views the persecution of the weak by the powerful as unjust and condemnable carries substantial weight in light of Tess's clear emergence as at least a sympathetic character and at most an blameless victim. In contrast to the superficial appearance of the powerless being begged by the cruelty of the powerful, the powerless are sometimes shown to react against their attackers or abusers and gain the upper hand. In Hardy's novel, Tess successfully inflicts even greater brutality on her rapist than he had inflicted on her. Likewise, Miss Havisham embarks on a similar path of revenge as she raises Estella to help her break hearts just as her own was once broken. However, unlike Tess who takes revenge on the same man who hurt her, Havisham generalizes her brother and former lover's cruelty towards her as cruelty of the entire male gender. To this end, he achieves his goal to some extent, breaking Pip's heart. who tells her that "he is as unhappy as [she] could ever wish [him] to be"[14]. However, both characters ultimately receive equally horrific punishments for their revenge against those who harmed them. Sara Thornton highlights this fact in the case of Miss Havisham, suggesting that "it is Miss Havisham's devouring and cruel qualities that link her to other fiery and dangerous women destined for destruction in Dickens... their 'fire' derives from the same self-consumption" . slow-burning fire of vengeance in Miss Havisham”[15]. Indeed, his fixation on revenge ultimately leads indirectly to his death, as he begs Pip for forgiveness and accidentally sets himself on fire in the process. This can be seen as a symbol of the self-destructive nature of seeking justice against cruelty. Likewise, Tess's violent stance against Alec is followed by her subsequent execution by hanging as his life is taken as payment for hers. The message here is clear; the victim cannot hope to gain the upper hand over her attacker's cruelty without having to accept ruthlessly harsh consequences without any tolerance for the suffering that led to her revenge. Joseph Caroll highlights the injustice of this by stating that “When Tess of d'Urbervilles is hanged for stabbing her rapist to death, Hardy explicitly protests against some cosmic principle of injustice”[16]. Yvonne Kozlovsky highlights this injustice by arguing that “ the idea that Tess was the victim of injustice was anathema to Britain's conservative and moralistic censors: as a member of the lower classes, they thought, death suited her”[17]. point of injustice between social classes. Tess is a working-class woman, which makes her suffering much less important than that of her upper-class male rapist. Furthermore, in Great Expectations, Dickens describes the occurrence of human cruelty as a cycle, with the victims of cruelty and abuse eventually developing to become perpetrators themselves. The main example of this cycle of cruelty can be seen through the character of Miss Havisham, a woman so damaged by her abandonment and abuse. frauds at the hands of the man she loved who almost dedicates his life to inflicting the same cruelty oneveryone. of the male gender. However, the real victim of Miss Havisham's cruelty is her adopted daughter Estella, who is forced to endure emotional and psychological abuse to transform her into the perfect tool for revenge. In fact, Havisham herself tells Pip that she “stole his heart and put ice in its place.” Here, the repercussions of cruelty against children on their development and coming of age are clearly underlined. Every aspect of Estella's psychological and emotional development is distorted by her cruel upbringing, including her empathy, her morality, and her ability to love. Estella admits to Pip that "it seems...that there are feelings, fantasies...that [she] is unable to understand...it is in the nature formed within [her]"[18]. Indeed, the nature he speaks of was formed under the corrupt leadership of Miss Havisham. Dickens also presents an alternative effect of cruelty on children, through the character of Pip. The novel follows Pip as he falls in love with a girl who has shown him nothing but emotional coldness and cruelty. Loving her despite this, he seems to be attracted to her precisely because of her poor treatment of him. The implication here is that people who were victims of cruelty in childhood grow to see submission to victimhood as the norm. Joe was also violently abused as a child and as a result marries a woman who continues this abuse against him. This is evidenced by Pip lamenting that "[he] wished Joe had been bought a little more gentlemanly, and so [he] should have been so too"[19]. In other words, if Joe had been able to recognize Mrs. Joe's cruelty for what it really was, then he would have been inclined to intervene not only for himself, but for Pip. Similarly, in Tess of the d'Urbervilles, Tess begins as a character who embodies purity and innocence. However, her rape at the hands of Alec d'Urberville not only serves to taint her physical and virginal innocence, but also her psychological innocence. When juxtaposed with his originally established moral purity, the brutality of his murder of Alec appears at best unbecoming of his nature. The implication here is the idea that cruelty can change a person's view of the line between what is and what is not moral behavior, leading them to behave as cruelly as the person who inflicted the suffering on them in the first place. place. When Alec's body is discovered, the description of how "the tip of the blade had touched the victim's heart" may be considered symbolic. Alec made her lose Angel, breaking her heart in the process, and in retaliation she literally breaks his heart, penetrating him with a knife. Here, it can also be noted that her violent penetration of his body with a kitchen knife is similar to her phallic penetration of him at the beginning of the novel. Samarian Kumar Paul AN Prasad highlights the true consequences of rape for Tess's morality and previous kindness as he argues that "she has changed a lot from the innocent girl... Now her actions are totally mechanical and her feelings and emotions have died with the death of her chastity"[20]. This is reminiscent of Estella's attenuated emotions resulting from Havisham's manipulative cruelty. In conclusion, the theme of cruelty in both Great Expectations and Tess of the d'Urbervilles is treated largely as an act. that those who have power inflict on those who have none. This cruelty comes in the form of exploitation or abuse in order to satisfy some personal profit, desire or relief. Whether it is adults against children, experts against innocents or rich against poor, the weak are cruelly destroyed by those who are, 2013.