Thomas Hardy: A Writer of Fantasy Novels
Thomas Hardy is a writer of fantasy novels. His works explore the concepts of time, decay, and change. His characters often confront unimaginable perils, and his novels are filled with moral dilemmas. Ultimately, Hardy writes about the inability of individuals to control their destiny. This awareness of mortality and the passing of time is reflected in the title of his novel, 'The Time Machine'. Though this book is not considered a classic, Hardy's books can be considered essential reading for fans of the genre.
'Jude the Obscure'
Jude the Obscure by Thomas Hardy is one of his most famous novels. It was first published in book form in 1895 after appearing as a magazine serial. It was Hardy's last finished novel and tells the story of Jude Fawley, a working-class young man who dreams of becoming a scholar. However, his life isn't so simple. He soon finds himself in the midst of a scandal that threatens his ambitions.
'The Dynasts'
The Dynasts is a sweeping, epic-dramatic work of English literature that follows the Napoleonic Wars in the early nineteenth century. It is divided into three parts and nineteen acts, with over 130 scenes. The book traces the events of the Napoleonic wars from 1805 to 1815. Part I shows Napoleon's emergence as emperor, followed by the rise of Wellington and the fall of Napoleon. The finale of the story culminates with the Battle of Waterloo.
'Channel Firing'
'Channel Firing' is a poem by Thomas Hardy that depicts the horrors of war and the futility of it. It was written before World War I and decries the barbaric nature of war and questions the human appetite for conflict and violence. The poem also questions the need to wage war in the face of the unending quest for power and salvation. This poem can be read at several levels.
'Veteris vestigia flammae'
'Veteris Vestigia Flammae' by Thomas Hardy is a beautiful poem that is highly atmospheric and mesmerizing. The poet's late poetry is very closely modeled on Poe's famous Annabel Lee and uses a rhyme scheme that is perfect for his works. The poems are mainly concerned with nature and often feature the phrase 'Veteris vestigia flammae' ('old flame') to preface them. In this poem, the speaker translates the phrase to mean "Old flame" to refer to a love interest, Eurydice.
'Poems of 1912-3 : Veteris vestigia flammae'
In the poem, Hardy describes the journey of Emma Gifford, the woman who died of a heart attack on 27 November 1912. This sequence of poems was written after their meeting the night before. Emma's ghost wanders the countryside; the two poets first met on the same clifftop in March 1870. Hardy repeats his view of Emma's ghost throughout the poem.
'Poems of 1912-4 : Veteris vestigia flammae'
In the Greek epic poem Aeneid, Dido writes, "Veteris vestigia flammae." The words refer to her capacity for love, which is rekindled by her Trojan hero, Aeneas. The poet then abandons her, and her capacity for love dies with her. The words have been translated many ways. One translation translates them as "sparkles of old flames," while another version uses the word "vestigia" to refer to a mark, trace, or footstep. Regardless of how you interpret the original meaning, Hardy's epigraph is an intriguing exploration of the relationship between remembered passions and those of a new generation.
'Poems of 1912-4 : Veteris vestigi
In 'Poems of 1913-4 - Veteris vestigi,' Yeats evokes the spectral as an aesthetically radical figure. Like Kandinsky, Yeats invested in a new para-scientific understanding of the ghost. He was interested in Rosicrucianism, Theosophy, and Esoteric Buddhism. He was also influenced by the theories of Einstein and John W. Dunne, a disciple of Einstein, who claimed that the past, present, and future are a single, serial time.
