維多利亞時代女性社會地位向來是歷史學家研究的焦點。當代許多小說家也在他們的作品中描繪女人的地位，透露出女性通常遭受不平等地對待。例如，湯瑪士．哈代(Thomas Hardy) 所描述的兩性關係反映男尊女卑的社會現象，因為他筆下的男性角色通常將傳統標準加諸於女性角色身上。然而，在《黛絲姑娘》(Tess of the d’Urbervilles) 一書中，透過描述女主角與其女性同事之間的互動，哈代也刻劃了女性之間的相互支持關係。此支持網絡 (support network) 促使她們提供黛絲精神上的扶持。這些女人之間的互助關係確實有助於黛絲抒解她所經歷的痛苦經驗，在她被安吉爾拋棄之後，尤是如此。 因此，本論文旨在探討哈代所著小說《黛絲姑娘》中女性同盟的議題。我將採用雪倫．馬克斯 (Sharon Marcus) 對女性情誼與婚姻之間互相關聯性的見解、蘿莉．布坎南 (Laurie Buchanan) 女性追求自我的看法、黛絲．寇絲里特 (Tess Cosslett) 女性之間「傳統女性角色同化」 (“assimilation in traditional womanly roles”) 的論點、以及裘蒂絲．布萊恩．溫特柏格 (Judith Bryant Wittenberg) 女性之間互相關懷的觀點。本文推論哈代藉由描述《黛絲姑娘》中的女性同盟，表達了對當代女性遭受不平等地對待的同情。此外，小說結尾，黛絲與安吉爾的復合實可視為快樂結局，因為安吉爾的愛與理解，黛絲最後終於找到了內心的平靜。但是，若非黛絲與她的女性同伴之間的女性同盟，促使黛絲寫信給她的丈夫，並且促成他改變心意與心靈成長，此快樂結局將不可能發生。

Historians have researched on the social positions of women in the Victorian era. Many novelists from that time also portray the society’s unfair treatment of women in their works. Thomas Hardy, for example, delineates the relationship between the two sexes, which reflects women’s inferior status to men, for his male characters constantly impose conventional standards upon the female characters. Nevertheless, in Tess of the d’Urbervilles, Hardy also presents a supportive relationship among women through depicting the heroine’s interactions with her female co-workers. The support network prompts them to provide Tess with spiritual consolation. The rapport among these women is essentially helpful for Tess to go through her miserable experiences, especially after Angel abandons her. Therefore, this thesis aims to investigate the theme of female bonding in Hardy’s Tess of the d’Urbervilles. I will approach this issue by adopting Sharon Marcus’s perspective of the correlation between female friendship and marriage, Laurie Buchanan’s view of the heroine’s search for identity, Tess Cosslett’s concept of the “assimilation in traditional womanly roles,” and Judith Bryant Wittenberg’s idea about women’s mutual support. This thesis posits that through depicting female bonding in Tess of the d’Urbervilles, Hardy conveys his sympathy for women’s mistreatment in his society. In addition, the reconciliation between Tess and Angel, at the close of the novel, can be viewed as a happy ending because with Angel’s love and his understanding, Tess eventually finds her peace of mind. But such a happy ending may not be possible without the female bonding between Tess and her co-workers, which prompts the heroine to write to her husband, thus bringing his change of heart and spiritual growth.

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