Both Uses of
felicity
in
Tess of the d'Urbervilles
- This amazed and enraptured Tess, whose slight experiences had been so infelicitous till now; and in her reaction from indignation against the male sex she swerved to excess of honour for Clare.†
Chpt 4 *infelicitous = awkward or inappropriatestandard prefix: The prefix "in-" in infelicitous means not and reverses the meaning of felicitous. This is the same pattern you see in words like invisible, incomplete, and insecure.
- She also, by a felicitous thought, took a handkerchief from her bundle and tied it round her face under her bonnet, covering her chin and half her cheeks and temples, as if she were suffering from toothache.†
Chpt 5
Definitions:
-
(1)
(felicity as in: domestic felicity) happiness or luck; or an instance or source of such
-
(2)
(felicity as in: felicity of expression) pleasing and appropriate manner or style; or an instance of such
-
(3)
(meaning too rare to warrant focus) meaning too rare to warrant focus:
Less commonly, Felicity is the first name of a female.