Discussing my overall view of Thomas Hardy's poetry about him being pessimistic.

        Considering to this, Hardy creates an image of something apart of nature dying. Yet again he is pessimistic, especially towards nature. Hardy states ‘ How the sick leaves reel down in throngs’ the word sick shows the reader something is unhealthy, dying, declining, something weak and unwell. He then places the word beside the word leaves, which is apart of nature; Hardy could have used the word leaves to be a metaphor of love, life or maybe people around him. When Hardy expresses that the leaves are reeling down in throngs, it tell us that he see the leaves (love, life, family) falling unconditionally and that he may see that it is incontrollable to stop it from falling.

The Going

Hardy depict images to a reader by expression how he sees nature. He manipulates the reader in many ways, he does this by using words that have a powerful effect or meaning in it. In stanza 2 Hardy writes ‘morning harden upon a wall’. In my opinion I see this as him being sad, and that he is extremely miserable that having morning is affecting him.

This is because the word morning is the first thing of the day, it is when the sunrises, for the morning to harden up on a wall show that he may see morning as stiffening up. This however has a negative and positive view to it. For morning to stiffen up may show that it is a solid start to the begging of the day, but this can also be vise versa. This could also be a new life; Hardy may have chosen mourning to show that it is a fresh start, which relates to life and for it to harden, it becomes secure and stable which is optimism.  

Following on during the last stanza Hardy put across to the reader his feeling. He does this by quoting ‘I seem but a dead man’. This illustrates that it is all about him. It is straightforward because it is in first person. He has pacifically chosen to place the word ‘dead man’ next to each other, to show the reader his feeling of being negative to life. We obviously can see that he is sad, depressed, and have looked ahead at life and see nothing but death. We have no choice but to believe that Hardy is again being pessimistic.

The Darkening Thrush

During the first stanza of this poem, we can see Hardy being pessimistic already. ‘Winter’s dregs made desolate’ the word winter is a time when living things especially animals or humans begin to hibernate. It is a time when it snows and as snow is white, and white is pure it may show that winter is a time of purity. For winter to be desolated, alone, bare, abandon, or to be deserted. The reader depicts an image of winter that is pure to be alone. Hardy may see that it should be that way shows the reader that Hardy is being pessimistic to nature.

Further more in stanza 2 Hardy uses he words’ Crypt, Cloudy, Canopy’ these words are related to death. the word crypt is in relation to other words such as tombs, grave, death, cell. This can mean that Hardy is thriving at the thought of death, and how he sees it. he places the word cloud canopy together, a full cover of cloud. This is a typical omen of when death is near. it gives the reader a image of a scene. For the sky to be fully covered, it may refer to him that he may be inanimate and lifelessness. Overall this gives the reader without a doubt of pessimism.

From all the point and evidence I have covered, I have come to a reasonable conclusion that Hardy as a human is very pessimistic about life in particularly and nature and love. Hardy always gives the reader a feeling of doubt, and is and can be optimistic, but this optimism is generally over run with him being pessimistic.