Thomas Hardy and his wife Emma were married for a very long time. ... When Emma died, Hardy realised his mistakes and missed her being around. ... Hardy's loneliness is shown when he quotes: 'You were weak and lame/So you never came,' This means Hardy went out without his wife's company and was alone even though they could have gone out together, Emma was too ill to go but Hardy went out anyway. ... The use of personal pronouns makes the poem more personal to Hardy and his wife which also enables the reader to feel more sympathy for Hardy and his life without his wife. ...

• Word Count: 558
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

Hardy wrote "During the Wind and Rain" in 1917, five years after his wife Emma Hardy's death in 1912. Like lots of his poetry after her death, Thomas Hardy's poem reminisces Emma's life. In this poem Hardy focuses on her family and the inevitability of death. ... " Then the stanza changes after an eclipse that Hardy uses to show the passage of time. ... In the third stanza Hardy shows the coming storm values equality, by adding "men and maidens....

• Word Count: 905
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

"Tess of the D"Ubervilles" is a classic tragedy by Thomas Hardy. ... The characters in "Tess of the D"Ubervilles", especially Tess, are well-rounded three-dimensional characters (although towards the end of this novel Hardy appears to have grown sick of all the other characters but Tess). ... The perception of this novel is certainly more modern but the plot and the properties are most definitely of Hardy's time. ... The reader believes that "Tess of the D"Ubervilles" is the best of Hardy's novels. ... Thomas Hardy fans would immensely enjoy the tragic story of "Tess of the D"Ubervil...

• Word Count: 1053
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School