I'm find the text really difficult to understand, how can I make it easier?

Lots of texts can be intimidating, (and some a bit dry!) so the best way to understand a challenging text is to experience the story before you read it. The best way to do this is to read introductions and chapter by chapter synopses on sites such as Sparknotes. This will help you get to grips with who is who and the main action- if you already know what is happening, you can process the text more effectively when reading it instead of struggling to follow the narrative progression. E.g. in Tess of the D’Urbervilles, if you already know that she will have sex with Alec and he is lying about who he is, you can focus on the nuances of phrases, motivation and character interaction, and have a much better idea of whether or not this is rape. Such sites also provide valuable notes on historical context so you can see how attitudes may be very different in different time periods!

You could also watch adaptations, as these are great way to visually experience the story (taking note of any departures from the text!), and you can contrast them with the text to see how different events/characters can be interpreted.

Reading the text as an ebook on a phone/tablet/laptop may also be helpful in processing difficult words, as inbuilt dictionaries can give quick and easy definitions, and passages can be highlighted and easily found again for further discussion during tutorials.