How Does Hardy Present Time And Change In 'Beeny Cliff'?
Poems of 1912-13; Beeny Cliff - Discuss in detail the way in which Hardy presents life as a journey subject to time and change, considering how this contributes to the themes and style of the collection.
In Thomas Hardy’s collection ‘Poems of 1912-13’ Hardy writes of his memory and grief after the death of his wife Emma in November 1912, much of this focussing on his reconciliation and realisation of the finality of death by reflecting upon the past, including the memories and heartache that they shared, evident most notably in ‘Beeny Cliff’.
Throughout the poem, we see Hardy indicate that life is a journey that takes us from our youth to the inevitability of death facing adversities that often prove difficult to surpass. There is a definitive …show more content…
All the poems in this collection are elegies thus we see Hardy focus on his intense revival of love for Emma causing his own guilt, especially in The Voice in which he describes himself as 'faltering forward’, suggesting he has become limited in his ability to continue his own journey. In Beeny Cliff, the description that the sun 'burst out again and purples prinked the main' seems to be archaic creating a sense of preciousness in the past which acts as an active metaphor for the revival of his love after darkened times of hardship. Thus, from here onwards life is to become a challenge for Hardy, having to deal with the processes of grief and reconciliation, especially when revisiting places where he and Emma shared dear moments together. This fear becomes clear as he describes the Cornish cliff as 'chasmal beauty bulks', expressing the grandiosity of nature. This also has a dual meaning of an undeniable reality of the size of his task of reconciliation as her death came as a complete shock to him. This is furthered by the 'chasmal beauty looms that wild weird western shore' with repetition and alliteration suggesting a vast and open love that was contained until Emma's death that seemingly becomes intimidating, both in the realisation of human insignificance in dictating events and as the weight of his grief rests on his
In Thomas Hardy’s collection ‘Poems of 1912-13’ Hardy writes of his memory and grief after the death of his wife Emma in November 1912, much of this focussing on his reconciliation and realisation of the finality of death by reflecting upon the past, including the memories and heartache that they shared, evident most notably in ‘Beeny Cliff’.
Throughout the poem, we see Hardy indicate that life is a journey that takes us from our youth to the inevitability of death facing adversities that often prove difficult to surpass. There is a definitive …show more content…
All the poems in this collection are elegies thus we see Hardy focus on his intense revival of love for Emma causing his own guilt, especially in The Voice in which he describes himself as 'faltering forward’, suggesting he has become limited in his ability to continue his own journey. In Beeny Cliff, the description that the sun 'burst out again and purples prinked the main' seems to be archaic creating a sense of preciousness in the past which acts as an active metaphor for the revival of his love after darkened times of hardship. Thus, from here onwards life is to become a challenge for Hardy, having to deal with the processes of grief and reconciliation, especially when revisiting places where he and Emma shared dear moments together. This fear becomes clear as he describes the Cornish cliff as 'chasmal beauty bulks', expressing the grandiosity of nature. This also has a dual meaning of an undeniable reality of the size of his task of reconciliation as her death came as a complete shock to him. This is furthered by the 'chasmal beauty looms that wild weird western shore' with repetition and alliteration suggesting a vast and open love that was contained until Emma's death that seemingly becomes intimidating, both in the realisation of human insignificance in dictating events and as the weight of his grief rests on his