1.

Thomas Hardy was born on 2nu june 1840 in Higher

Backhampton, a hamlet to the cast of Dorchester in Dorset
England. Although he started his career as an architect but h~
had ~ flair ~or writing poetry however, the publishers never
published his poems. So, he tried his hand at writing novels.
Some of his novels, 'Under the Greenwood Tree' ( 1872) ~ A pair
of Blue Eyes (1872), Far From the Madding Crowd (1874) ,
The Return of_the Native (1878) and The Mayor of Caster Bridge
( 1886) established Hardy as a formidable writer. Though his
novels seldom end happily, yet he cannot be considered as a
pessimist he caused himself a 'Meliorist' one who believed that man can live with
happiness if he understands his place in the universe and accept it.
Hardy's poetry explores a fatalist outlook against the dark, rugged landscape of his
native, Dorset. Much of his poetry reads as a sardoni_f lament of human beings. His work
'Satires of circumstances' took him to the greatest height of his poetic career. He breathed
his last on 11th january, 1928 in Dorchester, England. His last remains were interred
with national pomp in Westminster Abbey. Nv ~u¼:1 : ,,- ~ t P9D..6 J> aJ~
INTRODUCTION - GENERAL SUMMARY OF THE POEM
Thomas Hardy seems to be deeply affected by C~es Darwin's Theory of evolu-
tion. Man who believed that he was.an image of God, had been subjected to the fact that
he was nothing but an after effect of evolution-thereby the significance and dignity of
man was equated to nothing. Hardy wrote_this poem to lament the end of the nineteenth
century which he feels was far way better th3!1 w~at is about to come. The modem age
w s_c~~se ~~]f_ Qf_respect for hll!Jl@ life, storms of war in Euro and the
Pac c, over-zealous countries to acquire wealth and resources, irrational competition
fraught with dangerous consequences, ~eedfor rooney1 decline in social and moral val-
uef. The great evils of Maoist communism, German Nazism, the radical evil, Holocaust
wereenougfi fo show th~ inkli.!1gs that Hardy had, were so trl!e.
However, the tiny thrush, emerges as the star to tell the world that there is a hope for
a better century. The thrush's song echoes with the message "If Winter comes cans · 0
be far behind7::,. .,6 \.---CL-\ lS 0-1 cu A c, n_J- ~et..h<Tl-1 -
The Darkling Thrush 13
 l ,lttJ, n, J 111kvv.u ,, j t-'
ll\ 11tly id, 'No wmt t~ uml no ~pdn3 titk 1p its tum"·
-~~~~....---e="c-::..l po• M
SlGN POSTS
• Adttat) on~ d1smnl Wmtcl' duy.
~ Th Grey und Otimy minfull. .
• 1l1e Vcg-etnnon mound symbolic of Dr.nth and Destruction.
• The \me \<.)Okcd like the broken strings of ly,c.
• 'Ibc features on lt\nd matched with corpses.
t Image of isolat1011, m~n shdtrrcd in their warm homes.
• A cloudy canopy looks like thl1 tomb for the worl d.
• flle lo.mcntntion of the wind is ufuneral song.
• AU seemod 10 be shatlcrl!d and disillusioned
• Out of the pall of Gloom~ the speaker hears a song
• The singer is nfrail, old and tiny bird, thrush
• The thrush's song symbolises Hope for the next Century
------1/ THE POEM IN DETAIL i - j- - - - - -

I leant upon a coppice gate

When Frost was spectre-grey.
And Winter's dregs made desolate
The weakening eye of day.
The tangled bine-stems scored the sky
Like strings of broken lyres,
And all mankind that haunted nigh
Had sought their household fires.
The first stanza opens with{he descrip!,ion of dreary and bleak winter landscape. It is
the end of the daY,, Infact it is the end ~neteenth centqry. 'rhe speaker is leaning
against a ~n,.g_a~ which opens onto the wood~ Th~dim~nt of winter has left
ev~!J'.one S,.Q!..e and.bittelj The pr~~n~..Qf the frost has made this landscape as grey as a
ghost. It Jook~d gpastlY_!flA_h~u~ted. :]'he day's eye, that is the sun-which is the source of
life and Hght is waning. AGradual blindnessis Plesiding over the forces of nature, The
speaker looks out into the sky, but his sight is restricted by the tangled brush and vines.The
Vines look like the broken bits of lyre- Hence the speaker knows that he can't expect
music in such a bleak surrounding- it will just augment his pain and sufferings. All
mankind that depended on the sun to provide them with a positive light and strength
during the day, now they have curled up by the fire in their homes. This suggests modem
men seeking an isolation and distancing themselves from each other.
The land's sharp features seemed to be
The Century's corpse outleant,
Reverie Notes-cum-workbook
 His cry1>t the domly canopy;
The wind Its tleuth-lament
The ancient pulse of germ ~nd hf rth
Was shrunken hard and dry,
And every spirit upon earth
seemed fcrvoudcss as I.
Things go from dull and depressing to outright dismal. No hfc
".here. The spe~er.~ses a metaphor to describe the barrentamJ~£il~e a the c ~~.:..::
mneteenth rentmy. l he landscape becomes a map of everything that has happene er
the course of the century- the dead century. All the forces of Nature seem to ha e con-
spire~ to ~10urn the passing of the century. Even the- .seems w_sing_a deat tie.All
life-fomung element shrunk and lost. They seem to be disspirited, and favourless hke the
speak.er. -
At once a voice arose among
The bleak twigs overhead
In a full-hearted evensong
Of joy illimited;
An aged thrush, frail, gaunt, and small,
In blast-beruffled plume,
Had chosen thus to fling his soul
Upon the growing gloom.
All of a sudden out of the pall of gloom and silence, the speaker hears something. Ic
is a happ1_~oug.:_a son~ ol[~s.urrectioqandrebirth. The speaker wonders who the singer
is - finally the star emerges. It is a weak, old and tint!'ird. It may Q~ be beautiful but it
has an undying voice. There is f!O l?gic and no~xplanation to the e9tatic sound of the
----
bird. The speaker fails to understand why the frail bird had chosen the desolate land to
-
fling its song of joy.
So little cause for carolings
Of such ecstatic sound
Was written on terrestrial things
Afar or nigh around.
That I could think there trembled through
His happy good-night air
Some blessed Hope, whereof the knew
And I was unware.
The speaker points out that there is no good reason for the bird to be singing. The
speaker feels that the\vorld is a dead. dead place. Hence, Wh) such a merry song? He
wants ilie bird to match its tone and pitch to its surroundings. The world seems so desolate
The Dark.ling Thrush LS
 .
ke r's pe rc ep tio n of
te
t ch an ge th e sp ea
th ru sh •s so ng do se n' n;"~lri,1
ld ar ou nd hi m . Th e so O the
~ d sh ut te re d. T he w ri tte n on th e w or
iN ill A P<iJms he sees e dr ea ry la nd sc ap e
tl un gs - th e un pr om r. ut po ur in g ag ai ns t th e ev en in g gl oo m . Th ve
ru sh \-Vas a ju bi Ian t w U ig ha pp in es s. Th e sp ea ke r won/a
th ov cr llo
to sin.2: w ith su ch w hi ch he w as unawereo
th e th ru sh no 1·e-nson lm rb in i,, er of so m e ho pe , sp ir it of re ne wa l of th e th ru_sh embod: e.
as n of
\V he th er tb .e bi rd w pe fo r a be tte r ce nt ur y. 'n 1e so ng d
sp ea ke r se es a ra y o f ho
to he al th e w ou nd s of m an km d.
T he m in g up
ni et hi ng po si ti ve co _ _ __ __
so1n e ne w ne ss . so M ea n in gs ,_ __ _ _
Stanza 1
• lh poctp,untNuso1nb1cp1ct111unJth world
• His mond feels lonely nutl n1cultu1 ,v{ .
• p rsomhl:Ullon ot wmtcr nnd J1nst.
• The 1mn 1c of the gloomy end ol the duy. ~, here 1 no vibrancy m h
Stanza 2
• 1 he century is pct soni ficd as a co1 psc.
• Dull ohsc1 vat ton escalates to a dcspttir i11g wind set and the poet onl a
without p1 omisc or f uturc.
Stanza 3
• The use of word .. illirnitc<l" suggests something uncommon.
phere
• The thnish and its song seem to overcome the initial melancholy that the atmos
brought even to the readers.
Stan1..a 4
revelation
• True Hardy-style as it's not another human being that brings our speaker this
but it is nature.
it
• Hardy negotiates the two extremes perfectly here: our speaker can sense Hope but
is unintelligible.

--1 POETIC DEVICES - FIGURES OF SPEECH/ STYLE

Metaphor : It is an implied Simile. Examples of metaphor in the poem are -
• ~inte r, a metaphor for death.
• Spring, a metaphor for renewal of life and energy.
• '"fhe weakening eye of day - comparison of the sun to an ~ye .
- -
..__ ---=
• The century's ~ e outleant-comparison of ce~ ~ to_~~e~d ~ody.
• His crypt the cloudy canopy- comparison of cloud-- - - - --
_cov e~~tomb.
ng
• Had chosen thus to fli,ij.g his soul - comparison of the bird's song to an undyi

-
soul.
The Darkling Thrush 17
 Simile, r~ ,mplc., uf S11111l,
• 1hc t mgkd bmt stCHl~ ~cored the sky hkc th ,;t11ng ofhwkcn lyre ,
• \ me~ tH'C hCt"'.C J~ the sit 111gs of bmkcn ly1 c.
Personifi('ation
• Frost. \\intrr, Hop<\ L,mds<.\tpc .ind Ccntmy hnvc been given human attributct
\llitlirutiou ; Allitc1·,ttion is tho closl~ 1cpctitio11 of consooaHt sounds. Examples of
nlhtcmth1n in Lhc IJ(K'tn urc ---
• TI1e tangkd birn.' scored the sky.
• Had S()Ught
... their household fires .
s,n1bolism
Tiiomas. hru:~oems are known for ext~ns~ve use of s IIlQ.Q.ls. Thes~ symbols
enrich the texture of the verse an reve e per meaning of the
poem. "Th~cient pulse of germ and birth" symbolizes the source of life, the ~g of
thrush symbolizes resurrection, spirit of Jjfe, rbe last hope of desolate world. the~
s~bolizes nature. ,
Form of the poem
• It is written in iambic tetrameter. At any rate the rhyme scheme and meter of the
poem combined gives the poem-a song like quality or with the right reader to make
it sound like a chant or invocation.
• There are plenty heavy, gloomy G sounds gate, gray, dregs.
• There are certain C sounds such as 'corpse', 'crept', 'cloudy' and 'canopy' which
signifies knell for the century.
• The poem can also qualify for an elegy as it is a lamentation over the passing of the
century.
Diction
Diction is the poet's word choice. Hardy frequently coined new words in his poetry.
He called words created for a single occasion. 'nounce words'. The new words used in
the poem are -'outleant', 'blast beruffed' and 'spectre grey'. It is the diction and subject
matter that make the poem stand out.
Themes
• Despair : The primary theme of ''The Dark.ling Thrush" is the d_Espair of the modem
temperament. Hardy describes in lyrical, descriptive way the detail the dying of the old
world, but he cannot positively replace the dying with the new. Something is over, all is
changed, civilization has decayed, and he does not know what will replace it.

Reverie Notes-cum-workbook
 He Im Jo It tt1tf1, n n ,v
• mou
I-lard) is an isola• ted
n r
,
people \\tho c11-ems1de by thcirhou~ •ho
y Ll \ ~
and \\ ith. the natural cycle of d nth m
personi1.1s alone m the col uuound~c O
th
despair and he can't bchev t not of

• Hope : 1ne ~ong of th f1 utl tlu w,h c1 ybl J1 t rvourl

into the new centm • unublc tc, bchcve Omt cv n t1i thni h ,1 r ptc.~1emutnrc
nature can ha\ e a reason to hope.
nd 1 h
The entire poem portra) s the dark and dismal p,ctwc c,f Nature
emerges ac. an artist to pamt the black and while canvas of the comm
t

multi-!)hades of hope and joy.

-- -- -- -- ,I THE ME OF TllE PO}:M

Man Versus Nature
versu s Natu re. Natu re help us
One of the them es of 'The Dark.ling Thru sh' is Man
The best exam ple of death is foun d
to unde rstan d the notio n of Deat h and the cycle of Life.
e~~rything beco mes barre n.
in the chan ging of seaso ns ever y year, fall and wint er set in. and
chill s of wint er seaso n. How ever ,
Trees lose their leave s and most plant s die along with the
and the beau tiful flow er bloo m
after a few mon ths of Natu re's death , Sprin g come s along
bloo ming , with ering and
again. Life is prett y muc h like the passi ng of seasons; the cycle of
y uses the imag e of Eros t '"Spe ctre
even tuall y dyin g happ ens to e-very livin g being. Hard
chall enge s testin g the tend er and
giey ''to desc ribe Deat h. )ms imag erysi gnifi es the dark
ker is a pessi mist who does not fit
resili ence of even them ost robu st of sou~ Hard y's spea
song break s the mon o ony. gTuom
in the joyo us atmo sphe re creat ed by 'The Thru sh'. Its
of joy or peac e. The song of the
and desolation. Noth ing arou nd the spea ker show s any sign
The bird' s entry in the blea k and
'Thrush conv eys that S(?me bless ing is in store for mankind.
t of comp lete hope lessn ess.
deso late wint er landsc.ape is symb olic of hope in the mids
Perseverance
ce and persi stenc e inspi£e
The poet drives hom e the idea that perm anen ce, perse veran
~ it is these , that in all thing s
of all the· obstacles, disco_:yragements and impo ss1b ilitie
has a magi cal effec t befo re whic h
distinguishes the strong soul fr~ the weak. Perseverance
the thrush, revea ls a smal l hero ic
difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish. Th_e song of
. It sings and its passi onate spiri t
attem pt not to be browbeaten by the gloo m or desolation
and perse vere again st all odds in
teaches us to face the inevitable. It knows how to preserve
in our lives. Tli.e..thrush is an
life. Th.isis a lesson to all not to be deterred by the dark mom ents
ness of things and have a stron g
epitome of optimism. We must have a firm belie f in the good
. "If hopes are dupe s, fears may be
self-confidence.'Tuere is no occasion for feeling dismayed : - --- --
19
The Darkling Thrush
 SOt'lft} .
Pas: d & PliSO (l9lll
p::3aµ1es·ii:1;g ~ · s ~ ,._.B · ~ ' ' ° ,
II!.'!~~ m ~ sm:ieiy d ~ ~ o::lSe to ce..t~r:: ... - ~ ·
r:d;j ;:;nc; ']njm Q ; ~ ~ the cmtlJl1IlS c~ traditions of n.tr::... ----=- '
lk;j;E ~ ~ ,ED ~ t.ra: ;sr!ico of iWO (\:f•11mes. he finds Doth_i'"';: , ...
a:c.i!:c.::m-a Y~ tzre re;, e: :,;, rea:u2e ~ ~ e s ~ the thrush pn">p--~' :>,
F-g cf~ me pid ~ ~~ l\E:f'f" SCdre aI med ~ oi the ~- .... .
• '-_ t:if2lB1 fR!R!f ued m&ooIS. The re~~ vd:i:!J. v.:ns pale as-~
~ Tr-e : ... ...,.-;l).:....
'-~le i"©~ ~ Slill ~ a n t ~ 5ml ms mready set en ~ \\ e~rem ~ )"" '
i'te stems o:che ~~~ ~re ady readied me sky. E...~h and e, e~ !Tiem~-~ -~--
~ was ID~ ~ '!11eSlmmeirdomestic ~renainmenCS.. ]be poe. .s ,e.1.11!
g2:.e. :"2e 4mp feanm::S of me la:nds:cape ap;pea.~ m be me corpse or dcad
-?(-:;
bod~ ,· r.t:
z:rt:=teerrb ™"1' · Thecan m}~was afmostdying. ~process ofbirth and gro·,1h ~~r1e_
to ~ e stoppec fu !he flcororoD.s wimet:. ~ s.kr was dondJ~ a Si.:mJ was blowinf E, t>~
lr.5g ~ !eh gloom and &:pressron.. But 51Jdrlen1}• a song issued from the d:lrk ru)_
~-~ llrancbes of lbe tree. h ~ ~ a n d it came from the mner ffi<'SI ..-t~r,' r·
~ ~ h was ~~d y joyous and delightf ul. An old rhrush iliac was lean.
fr:1. '~k
w~ a s :singing 10 h-lshea rt's ooment in the midst of en\elop ing darlmes s. H1;'_J',t!_n
1t
was pettmb ed by !he gusr of wind. The poet .fu¢s Ibe Ia} of hope in the bin:; ·s SOl'f He
nopes for me coming golden fntme. L -

~Y's dnusb repteSe lllShisp essirom mtheroids t ofoptim ism orrevers;}I It seem~
that Hardy is wanded betwee n optimis m and pessimism. between hope anJ despair. The
poet is acmely sufferin g from a kind of dilemm a or conflict. The evenin,g S) mbolizes left
nefp ~ ~.Jinstration; mda1 d ~ and disillus ionmen t But the song of the chrush
synd> ol~Jh e spirit of hgp@ a hope fer ~orJd of be.autr:_ a wor1d which is de\;oid of
n ~ the hope of tbebeginpi!1gofa o e ~c.en11:!!.Y oc_Millennium. It represents the
passing away of an otd cemmy and beraJding of a brigh1 and hopeful ne\\ century.
--- ~ -~- ---
20 Re,,.ene NoteH: wortboot
 In l'h l l ml th mu
Although l th h1 Wutltl t l
fol 111 d
sp oy I
He 1r h D <
bu
of
th nnrJ there ho i"
· ' rush Is n th dark m
Hartly hnnscl • nng np orhu Cots'' 'Yet out 0
hope. o.ut of~the goo~ln1~ht llir trcmhlcs forth an ~,r of go(>d
c~~ spnng he far bchm~.. The fu!:ush thus I! mboli1,ed the spmt
ot Jt1r and hope that lay mstore ot urc, c KlQtQ Qf the new century.
not been •~JOSport:d out of the "g1owing gloom" ol the present century
the th~sh.s song 1&.posiuvc. Although.the "blcssc<l Hope" i.e. knowl
p~s~nty o!}!y t~c bird hasJID!.lQf which the speaker is yet unaware, the
b1r<!_s song as a sign that 1bere isllOpc for the fot _.
Hardy's The Dark.ling Thrush is the ba · · nated" kJoim
me~o,rism". Hardy has a g r ~ consciou . e '6lesse ~
tlie ~!µI~ ge~er~on, ~ardy is basicallypessimistic but a note of optimism I noticed
h~re m ~s faith 1~ ~1an _s future. The ~ong of the thrush is joyous and spontaneou . The
brrd by virtue of tts mstmct knows ths-futurn-but the-poet-is nolfilVare of. Here, Hardy'
attitu~e.to nature is philosophical. N_ature's outward appearance may change but life m
~ature 1s neveuiead, -=
-- - I SOLVED LONG QUESTIONS! 1--- - - -

1. (a) 'The Darkling Thrush' written by Thomas Hardy is imbued with despair
and pessimism. Discuss. [8]
Ans. 'The Darlding Thrush' embodies Thomas Hardy's despair and pessimism. Hardy
seems to express the temper of his age. In his opinion the Victorian Age was
barren and sterile age dominated by materialistic views and so spiritually
degenerated. The pessimism of Hardy is the outcome of a deep seated spiritual
disturbance to which he was eminently-prone. The Victorian age experienced a
protracted battle between the advancing forces of science and agnosticism and
the retreating forces of Christianity and faith which had been holding the fort
for times immemorial. While the tremendous advance of science destroyed
much of the existing faith, it could not provide another spiritual anchor. Hardy
felt lost without moorings or rudder.
Thomas Hardy has always been a painter of darker side of life. There are certain
factors that compel us to believe him a pessimist. He believed the world to be
a thorny field. He was of the opinion happiness is but an occasional episode in
a general drama of pain.
The Dark.ling Thrush 21