The darkling thrush meaning. THE SIGNIFICANCE OF "DARKLING" IN HARDY'S "THE DARKLING THRUSH" on JSTOR 2022-12-26
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The Darkling Thrush is a poem written by Thomas Hardy in 1900, near the end of the Victorian era. The poem reflects on the approach of the new year and the change it brings, as well as the speaker's own feelings of despair and longing for the past. The title of the poem refers to a thrush, a type of bird, singing on a "desolate shore" as the sun sets on the old year.
The speaker of the poem is standing on the edge of a field, observing the thrush as it sings its "eldritch" song. The word "eldritch" suggests that the song is otherworldly or strange, perhaps reflecting the speaker's own sense of alienation and disconnection from the world around them. The speaker describes the thrush as "frail" and "gaunt," suggesting that it is weak and emaciated, possibly symbolizing the speaker's own feelings of fragility and vulnerability.
Despite the bleakness of the setting and the speaker's own despair, the thrush's song brings a sense of hope and renewal. The speaker describes the song as "full-hearted" and "clear," suggesting that it is strong and unwavering despite the difficult circumstances. The thrush's song also represents a connection to the past, as the speaker reflects on the "age-old song" that the thrush sings.
The poem's theme of change and renewal is further emphasized through the imagery of the setting and the speaker's reflection on the passing of time. The sun is setting on the old year and the speaker is standing on the edge of a field, suggesting that they are at a threshold, on the cusp of a new beginning. The speaker also reflects on the "death-mark" that the year has left on the landscape, suggesting that the passing of time brings both change and loss.
Overall, The Darkling Thrush is a poignant reflection on the passage of time and the human experience of change. The thrush's song serves as a beacon of hope and renewal in the face of despair and the passing of the old year. It also serves as a reminder of the enduring power of art and the human spirit to find meaning and solace in difficult times.
The Darkling Thrush Summary
The cycle of birth and rebirth seemed to have shrunken and dried up, like the spirit of the speaker. Fourth Stanza So little cause for carolings Of such ecstatic sound Was written on terrestrial things Afar or nigh around, No one knows what inspires the darkling thrush singing compared to singing Christmas carols. The small bird could see a small quantum of hope, which the poet is unable to see. The last date is today's date — the date you are citing the material. Life expectancy in England was around 40 then. Dull observations escalate to a despairing mindset and the poet only sees a world without promise or future.
There is another focal point to this poem — the Thrush. In all fairness to Thomas Hardy, any other human being would have been affected the same way to see the deafening silence, and the chill. The speaker discovers that an old, enfeebled thrush with frayed plumes is crying out. The death and desolation of the first two stanzas parallel the dying of the old century. His poetry too is generally received with high praise and admiration.
The song was coming out of boundless joy. By then he was 60, and the old age was beginning to bite him. Is The Darkling Thrush an ode? Many of his poems are arranged in regular stanzas, with a set line length. Answer The poem "The Darkling Thrush" was written with a precise prominence on time and change. Hardy was strikingly depressed throughout the poem and confused too as to why the thrush was singing so zestfully, as he cannot find any reason for the thrush to sing so joyously. In the poem the darkness or the dying of light is representative of the death of a century, and the despair it brings.
The last date is today's date — the date you are citing the material. Answer "The Darkling Thrush" is a nature poem and its subject is the titular bird. The formal strictness of the verse is a bulwark against disorder. Here Darkling represents the dark, where the landscape is visible and the sun is slowly weakening but still lies above the horizon. The form of the poem is traditional, of the nineteenth century, though the meaning is modern, of the twentieth.
May be, good times would soon return, but the speaker was unaware of any such good tidings. An aged thrush, frail, gaunt and small, With blast-beruffled plume, Had chosen thus to fling his soul Upon the growing gloom. The second date is today's date — the date you are citing the material. By alluding to such a state, Hardy shows how he perceived England to be then — insipid and emaciated. It is a transitional poem as it bridges the 19th and the 20th centuries together. Hardy describes in lyrical, descriptive detail the dying of the old world, but he cannot positively replace the dying with the new.
We have an ababcdcd rhyme scheme; each stanza repeats the same pattern but with a different end rhyme. A dark cloud hovers over it to further accentuate the gloom and doom feeling. Hardy seems to be converted from a lively man in the former century to that of a pessimist in the succeeding one. The hope that Hardy had felt in the song of the thrush came fruitful with 'Tess' and 'Jude the Obscure' now being widely read and admired by all lovers of literature. This old century is not about to give way to new, vigorous life.
Here is an instance where the two overlapped: In b last- beruff led p lume Line 25 Consonance L sound + Alliteration B sound. When Hardy wrote 'The Darkling Thrush' on the threshold of the twentieth century, he himself was making a transition—from writing novels to writing poetry exclusively. Cite this page as follows: "The Darkling Thrush - Bibliography and Further Reading" Poetry for Students Vol. Apart from his advancing age, England in the late twentieth century suffered from a plethora of socio-economic stresses that made intellectuals wary and pensive. Long Questions and Answers 1. He sees no hope for rebuilding or renewal in the coming century.
Cite this page as follows: "The Darkling Thrush - Historical Context" Poetry for Students Vol. Often considered to be a Victorian Realist, Hardy was influenced by a variety of sources from Milton to the Romantics and even J on Stuart Mill. So, it can be summed up that this poem "The Darkling Thrush" is full of natural elements which are treated in Hardy's own style to maintain the grim theme of the poem too. If we ponder upon the time when "The Darkling Thrush" was written then it was the last day of the nineteenth century, again a time which has great importance as it's a link between the forthcoming time and the past. This comparison is also important in suggesting the lack of music or happiness for that matter.
Was it his old age, or the depressing social conditions of England that bothered him? The narrator in the poem only sees the negativity around him and fails to see the hope that is abundantly spread around. It was an old thrush bird — feeble, lean and small, with its feathers disarranged by the wind blast-beruffled. Or does he sing a song of hope — a reassurance of good things that are to come? Images of nature are frequently accompanied by a tone of amazement Hardy is sometimes the autobiographical speaker, though he also uses an abstract observer as the speaker. What is an idealistic poem? He died in 1928, a few miles from where he was born. The second date is today's date — the date you are citing the material. The poet was sad because he felt that the New Year would bring in nothing to be happy about. Every living creature seems devoid of passion.
