How is Tess described during the 'Maiden' phase and what image of her does Hardy render through his use of language?

During this phase of the book the antagonist Alec sexually assaults Tess. Hardy never explicitly states that the protagonist is raped, yet instead, uses symbolic colours and descriptive language to suggest that this has occurred. Due to Hardy's initial readers belonging to a conservative Victorian society, it can be argued that he opted to utilise ambiguous language to hint that the rape happened rather than explicitly state that it did. For example, he describes Tess as a 'pale nebulousness' and a 'white muslin figure he [Alec] had left upon the dead leaves'. Hardy continuously uses the colour white throughout the progression of the plot in order to describe and insist to his readers that Tess is pure. Being pure was paramount for a woman in a Victorian society, and thus, Tess is shamed for falling pregnant and Alec is left unpunished due to the patriarchal society it is set in. Some critics and Hardy's initial readers may have blamed Tess for the event that occurs in this phase. However, it can be clarified through Hardy still describing Tess even after she is raped as a 'white muslin figure', that he defends his heroine and provides her a voice in a time that a woman like Tess would have been silenced. Furthermore, Hardy utilises juxtaposition to further prompt his readers that his protagonist is innocent, despite the events that have occurred; Sex was a taboo topic within the novel's setting in a rural British village, and it was sacred that couples must have waited until marriage to have a sexual relationship with one another. Hardy even criticises this Victorian society for their hypocritical expectations surrounding gender; the image of Tess as an innocent figure is further highlighted through his description of the setting. Tess lays there helpless as a 'white muslin figure' whilst 'Everything else was blackness alike'; the 'blackness' could refer to the corruption within society. Hardy, additionally, illustrates to his readers how his heroine ultimately awaits her tragic downfall as the consequences of Alec's actions essentially await in the 'blackness' that surround this helpless Tess which will eventually cave in and engulf her.