Hardy continues this theme throughout the next stanza, in which the narrator states, “It made me think of timber’s varied doom: one inch where people eat and drink, the next inch in a tomb.” (Lines 17-20) referring to the brevity of human life, as well as the abruptness in which it ends. He illustrates the unpredictable nature of human life by stating that timber’s “doom” is varied, that is, we never know exactly how long we really have left. By describing life in inch increments, Hardy is commenting on how fast our lives seem to pass us by. By using inches as the unit to which life is measured, he is making a direct connection to the close proximity of passing away.
Hardy continues on to touch upon the great irony of life, “It shocked you that I gave to you one end of a piece of wood whose other is in a grave?” (Lines 30-32) the irony being, that from the moment we are born, we start with one foot already in the grave, and before we know it, mortal life (the first inch) ends and death (the second inch) begins. In addendum to his symbolic use of the timber to express his opinion of the human condition, Hardy uses the relationship between husband and wife to show the connection between life and death as well.
The husband has a clear perspective of life. He is responsible for the construction of the workbox, as a “joiner, of village life” (Line 3). He speaks about the nature of the work he has created, the oddities and pitfalls that are intrinsic in the material from which it comes. Through his understanding of the workbox Hardy demonstrates an understanding of life in the character. The man is open to deliberate in things pertaining to life and death. By constructing the workbox from a “scantling”(Line 10) scavenged from a coffin workshop, Hardy is showing the comfort the husband has with death. Had he any preoccupations about death he most likely would not choose a coffin as his source of scrap material.
Whereas the husband meets the issue head on, the wife tries her best to side step the issue. Upon her unearthing of the nature of the box, the husband asks her “ why do you look so white, my dear, and turn aside your face?” (Lines 21-22). By turning her head the wife demonstrates a desire to avoid the issue, of perhaps an inference from Hardy she views the topic obliquely at best. Although the wife attempts to deny her discomfort with the issue through rationalizations and defensive posturing, the husband nonetheless, continues to press the topic. When the husband asks his wife if the origin of the box “shocked” (Line 31) her, the wife replies “Don’t, dear, despise my intellect, mere accidental things of that sort have no effect on my imaginings.” (Line 32-36). The language used by Hardy is strong, the wife doesn’t say “underestimate” or “disrespect” in regards to her intelligence, she uses despise. In Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary “despise” is defined as “to regard as negligible, worthless, or distasteful.” This word seems immensely strong for the conversation taking place, the forcefulness of the word reflects on her desire to dodge the issue.
Hardy draws his message to a close in the final stanza “ Yet still her lips were limp and wan, her face still held aside, as if she had not only known John, but known of what he had died.” (Lines 37-40) Primarily, Hardy has shown that the wife’s “imaginings” have indeed been affected, as she now seems to have some knowledge of the deceased along with an insight as to what he had died, each which could only be supplied through her imagination. The wife’s face continues to be held askance, but her visage has been affected; her lips now limp, and “wan” i.e.; pale, deathly. In describing a woman that has pressed hard to avoid the issue of death as death-like, Hardy is telling the reader that despite any wishes to avoid death, death touches us all regardless. The connection between life and death cannot be denied, nor avoided. They are intrinsically involved, leaving one sole option; which is the acceptance of our inexorable fate.
Hence the focal point of Hardy’s “The Workbox” is indeed the connection between life and death. The author shows the elusive nature of the confines of our lives, as well as the abruptness in which these boundaries intertwine. The author shows the irony, and inevitable disposition of life and death. Showing this connectivity through the symbolism of the timber, the workbox that was established as representing life, and coffin clearly representing death, Hardy has drawn a succinct commentary of the human condition, in all of its complexity.
