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Feel free to post any Hardy connections you come across in your reading!

Thomas Hardy is mentioned in the book I'm currently reading: The Haunted Bookshop by Christopher Morley. It was published just after the First World War, in 1919.

Now that the fighting is over is a good time to read Thomas Hardy’s The Dynasts. Printer’s ink has been running a race against gunpowder these many, many years. Ink is handicapped, in a way, because you can blow up a man with gunpowder in half a second, while it may take twenty years to blow him up with a book. But the gunpowder destroys itself along with its victim, while a book can keep on exploding for centuries. When you read that book you can feel it blowing up your mind. It leaves you gasping, ill, nauseated�� oh, it’s not pleasant to feel some really pure intellect filtered into one’s brain! It hurts! There’s enough T.N.T. in that book to blast war from the face of the globe. But there’s a slow fuse attached to it. It hasn’t really exploded yet. Maybe it won’t for another fifty years.

�� The Haunted Bookshop

The Dynasts is an epic war poem which contains nearly 300 characters! Although critics greeted it as ‘a great work of art�� and ‘the most notable literary achievement of the last quarter-century��, it remains one of Hardy's least popular works.

What a good idea for a thread, Jane!

And an interesting connection. I have to admit I've never attempted to read The Dynasts.

Jane wrote: "The Dynasts is an epic war poem which contains over 300 characters! Although critics greeted it as ‘a great work of art�� and ‘the most notable literary achievement of the last quarter-century��, it remains one of Hardy's least popular works"

Wow Jane, that's a lot of characters to keep straight!

Jane wrote: "Thomas Hardy is mentioned in the book I'm currently reading: The Haunted Bookshop by Christopher Morley. It was published just after the First World Wa..."

The Dynasts sounds really intriguing, especially since we've been reading so many of Hardy's anti-war poems. I'll have to add it to my infinitely expanding list of books to read. Thanks Jane

Good luck, Bridget! I find it a little daunting. Greg, I find it hard to keep track of just a handful of characters. I wonder if it was a misprint in Claire Tomalin's biography, as I can't find any information on the character count elsewhere. I double checked the source (Thomas Hardy), and I made a mistake. The book actually says 'nearly' 300. Well, that makes all the difference in the world!

Bridget wrote: "The Dynasts sounds really intriguing, especially since we've been reading so many of Hardy's anti-war poems."

It's a little hard not get discouraged. I think of all the wonderful anti-war poetry that came out after WW1, then remember that only two decades later it was happening all over again. It's a shame Morley's hope wasn't realised—over a hundred years later and war still hasn't been blasted from the face of the globe.

Jane wrote: "Good luck, Bridget! I find it a little daunting. Greg, I find it hard to keep track of just a handful of characters. I wonder if it was a misprint in Claire Tomalin's biography, as I..."

That's still a lot, and it does sound a bit daunting to me too!

I suppose a lot of these characters are historical personages, though many of them might not be familiar to a modern reader. I can't imagine what it must be like, but the descriptions I see online make me think of experimental works like U.S.A.: The 42nd Parallel / 1919 / The Big Money by John Dos Passos or something, an attempt at a sweep through history via the lens of art.

Greg wrote: "I can't imagine what it must be like, but the descriptions I see online make me think of experimental works like U.S.A.: The 42nd Parallel / 1919 / The Big Money by John Dos Passos or something, an attempt at a sweep through history via the lens of art."

Some have compared it to War and Peace due to its coverage of historical events of the same era. It sounds like such an ambitious work. Hardy includes scenes of ordinary life alongside scenes of war, and there are musical, astronomical and supernatural references. It's certainly not light reading!

Literary Trails: British Writers in Their Landscapes

There is a chapter devoted to Thomas Hardy in the above book, written by Christina Hardyment and published by the National Trust. The following quotation is taken from the book and suggests a side of Hardy that many may find surprising. It was written by T.E. Lawrence in 1923. Bear in mind, Hardy was 83 years old at the time!

There is an unbelievable dignity and ripeness about Hardy: he is waiting so tranquilly for death, without a desire or ambition left in his spirit, as far as I can feel it: and yet he entertains so many illusions and hopes for the world, things which I, in my disillusioned middle-age, feel to be illusory. They used to call this man a pessimist. While really he is full of fancy expectations.

This is a far cry from the guilt ridden and grief stricken Hardy of the Emma Poems. I find it rather uplifting to think Hardy found a measure of peace in his final years, that he felt satisfied with his work, and even entertained "hopes for the world".

Great post Jane! T.E. Lawrence had a very strange life, in fact, and lived eccentrically by choice at "Clouds Hill" in Dorset

The house is now owned by the National Trust, so it can be visited. It's very out of the way, and tiny: just 3 rooms. No electricity and no toilet (he did what the bears do!) The most impressive thing was a huge gramophone and records. And books.

T.E. Lawrence did have literary visitors, including George Bernard Shaw, E.M. Forster and Robert Graves as well as Thomas Hardy, but they were not impressed when he gave them a tiny sleeping bag to sleep in, and fed them tinned baked beans! Apparently Thomas Hardy visited quite a few times, and was enchanted by the birdsong outside the upstairs window (there is no bed - T.E. Lawrence used a sleeping bag too), and gazed out of the window listening. I stood there and imagined him 😊

T.E. Lawrence was addicted to speed though, and died at the age of 46, after he crashed his motorcycle, swerving to avoid two boys on the country road near Wareham. (Thomas Hardy 's fictitious name for Wareham is Anglebury.)

How lovely that Hardy focused on the birdsong. I noticed that out of all those names, it was Hardy who came from the most humble beginnings. There had been eight family members living in Hardy's Cottage, so it's likely Lawrence had more room than Hardy used to have! I'm envious of your visit, Jean—armchair tourism can become quite frustrating.

I've been to both (yes, I'm lucky) and would say that the square area is about the same. They are both simple to the point of being spartan, and very different from the elegant Max Gate!

Thomas Hardy's cottage does not have stairs though, only a ladder. But it does have a bed, in which Thomas Hardy was born. T.E. Lawrence's lack of furnishing and amenities was by choice, which is of course very different, and seems a little perverse since he liked to entertain! Thomas Hardy's grandmother and parents did not really have much choice about how cramped they were.

Bionic Jean wrote: " T.E. Lawrence's lack of furnishing and amenities was by choice, which is of course very different, and seems a little perverse since he liked to entertain!"

This is so funny, Jean! A sleeping bag and baked beans (at least they were Heinz, according to the book). I wonder if he received a high number of return visits 😂 There is also a section on Lawrence in the book, and apparently the reasoning for the spartan surroundings was explained in a letter Lawrence wrote to a friend:

Nothing in Clouds Hill is to be a care upon the world. While I have it there shall be nothing exquisite or unique in it. Nothing to anchor me.

I still don't quite understand why he had no bed, if he had a gramophone; perhaps a gramophone was more portable? Lawrence was "an expert at mixed grills", though there is no further elaboration and I don't know if that means the same thing as it does over here (which is various grilled meats). He also made tea with his "own blend of China tea". Count me in for the tea and the birdsong!

I suppose T. E. Lawrence got used to the simple life with few belongings from his time with the nomads in the desert. He didn't have to worry about his guests overstaying their welcome if he served them beans from a tin.

Literary Trails: British Writers in Their Landscapes looks like an interesting book, Jane, and an inspiration for a vacation (holiday).

Connie wrote: "I suppose T. E. Lawrence got used to the simple life with few belongings from his time with the nomads in the desert."

That's probably it, Connie. Lawrence must have felt a freedom in that sort of existence.

I found the book for 50c in a charity shop and was quite chuffed with my find! It did make me regret not seeing these places when I had the chance, though, as travelling is not an option for me right now. It has lots of handy trail/route information, so I'll hang on to it (who knows what the future may bring).

The People's Poet: William Barnes of Dorset mentions Hardy a number of times as a literary “descendant�� of Barnes. This is a cracking good biography, by the way, with plenty of examples of Barnes�� excellent dialect poetry. I think that many people in this group would enjoy it. Available in a reasonably priced Kindle edition.

Oh yes, William Barnes is the quintessential Dorset poet, isn't he? I find his dialect quite difficult though, so since others will also find that, I suspect that's probably why Thomas Hardy's more accessible poetry is so much more popular.

Thank you for recommending this biography Patrick; I hadn't heard of it.

I picked it for reading quite at random!

General Hardy question: Has anyone else seen the similarity in themes, philosophy, and concerns with Hardy and the American farmer/novelist/essayist Wendell Berry?



Berry maintains that the small American farmer has been invaded by outside forces, i.e. Agriculture Corporations and this has left them to a fate similar to the original Native American Indians.

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Wendell Berry is an author I keep meaning to read, and I know he is highly thought of by GR friends, so I'll be very intested in others' thoughts on this 😊

Jean I particularly liked Berry’s essays.

Perhaps that is where I should start - thank you!

I've read some of Wendell Berry's novels set in Port William, Kentucky. He has lots of respect for the small farmer just as Hardy does for the farmers of Wessex. There is also a sense of a strong community where people help each other, a feeling I also noticed when reading some of Hardy's "Wessex Tales."

I have not read Berry's essays yet.

Connie: Berry has written literally dozens of books of essays, I've read maybe ten or so along with Biographies and 'Conversations with' books. I've only read one of his novels. Hannah Coulter, and was underwhelmed. Berry is a second-tier poet so I think Hardy is far the superior poet and novelist. I think Berry's strength is with the essay. Few Americans think too deeply on how their food is grown, and that is a problem going forward. Berry is a good antidote to that problem

Donald wrote: "Connie: Berry has written literally dozens of books of essays, I've read maybe ten or so along with Biographies and 'Conversations with' books. I've only read one of his novels. Hannah Coulter, and..."

Jayber Crow is my favorite Berry novel, and much of it is set in a barbershop. I think barbers and hairdressers really get to know the details of their customers' lives, so it's a connection with the people of Port William. Berry's A Place on Earth and The Memory of Old Jack are also excellent.

It is true that we don't think much about where our food is grown, and preserving farmland. Hardy did have respect for the farmers, and realized how hard they worked in uncomfortable weather. Even after spending time in London, he built his home back in the rural area where he felt most comfortable.

Connie: Here's a more readable list of Berry's works:



Some of the Titles are interesting. One in particular caught my eye:

"What Are People For?"

Way back when, when I was a teenager, I read several of Kurt Vonnegut's novels. In, I think it was, "Sirens of Titan" the Protagonist said he had only one question for God, and it was:

"What Are People For?"

Another link, I think, between Hardy and Berry was Corporations. How Large Agriculture Corporations rip-off small farmers and consumers is a constant theme of Berry's. Hardy gave some thought about the ravages of another massive Corporation, The East India Company, which in its hey-day dwarfed the Corporations that so worries Berry.

It must be remembered that the tea that found itself floating in Boston harbor was owned by the East India Company!

Jean: I was contemplating reading the Dynasts, but with some reservations. I wonder if the new movie out about Napoleon by
Director Ridley Scott may stimulate some interest in Hardy's The Dynasts!

Interesting, though I wouldn't even attempt a read of The Dynasts at the moment! Have you read it Don?

Jean: No, I said I was contemplating reading it, I can see from the descriptions that it would be a hard slog. I have already bought the Kindle version though, 99 cents it was , I believe.

So you did, sorry! Mind must have fluttered on to other things (such as whether the group would be interested) 🙄

Thanks for the Berry suggestions, Donald.

The movie about Napoleon sounds interesting, but I personally would not be interested in all those battles in "The Dynast."

Me neither I'm afraid 🤔