ABSTRACT
Hardy's 1891 novel, Tess of the d'Urbervilles, presents a female protagonist as the title character who has a secret. The characterization of Tess and the structure of the narrative mimic the fractured self of a traumatized individual; trauma theory allows us to move beyond recognizing the presence of secrets and silence in the text to understanding more completely the nature of Tess's experience. The most stunning evidence that Tess is a traumatized figure comes through the multiple identities that she develops over the course of the novel. Hardy presents a much more faithful picture of her experience than he or the psychologists of his day would have been able to name. While Tess articulates her experience in 'The Chase', every indication in the text tells us that Tess is keeping a secret from herself that is, in turn, kept from the reader.
