Login
Login

Poems of the Past and the Present

{{short description|Collection of poems by Thomas Hardy}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}

{{italic title}}

Poems of the Past and the Present is the second collection of poems by English poet Thomas Hardy, and was published in 1901. A wide-ranging collection, divided into five headings, it contains some of Hardy's most powerful and lasting poetic contributions.I. Ousby ed., The Cambridge Guide to Literature in English (Cambridge 1993) p. 746

Reception and thematics

The unusually favourable reception of the collection was due in large part to its opening with the section of 'War Poems', many previously published independently, and welcomed by the public for their treatment of the Boer WarM. Seymour-Smith, Thomas Hardy (London 1994) p. 637-9 — the seminal Drummer Hodge being the outstanding example.I. Ousby ed., The Cambridge Guide to Literature in English (Cambridge 1993) p. 746

Hardy's friend Sir George Douglas called some of the collection's poems Aeschylean, and Hardy himself considered that the 'Doom' themes in the work overlapped with those in The Dynasts.T. and F. Hardy, Thomas Hardy (London 2007) p. 404 However, he had been careful in the collection's Preface to disclaim any organised philosophy therein, adding that "Unadjusted impressions have their value..."D. Wright ed., Thomas Hardy: Selected Poems (Penguin 1978) p. 442

Notable pieces

Among other notable pieces were his poem 'Well-beloved', on the transient succession of a man's love-ideal;T. and F. Hardy, Thomas Hardy (London 2007) p. 294 and "The Darkling Thrush", the humorous piece "The Ruined Maid", and the dour sequence "In Tenebris".I. Ousby ed., The Cambridge Guide to Literature in English (Cambridge 1993) p. 746

See also

References

{{Reflist|2|}}

External links

{{Thomas Hardy}}

Category:1901 poetry books

Category:English poetry collections

Category:Poetry by Thomas Hardy

{{poetry-collection-stub}}