The Darkling Thrush

Vocabulary
darkling – in darkness or darkening
coppice – a thicket of tress or shrubs
spectre-gray – frost made the landscape as gray as a ghost
dregs – remains
eye of day – sun
bine-stems – dried-out stems of bindweed
scored – carved
broken lyres – Romantic Aeolian lyre or wind harp
outleant – stretched out, one of Hardy’s own compounds
pulse – life force;
germ – state from which things can grow
evensong – evening service worshipping God
fervourless – void of emotion
illimited – unlimited
caroling – singing
crypt – burial place
canopy – an ornamental cloth, here the cloudy sky hanging over the scene

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Q. How do the dominant colors of the poem (black, white, and red) connote death and
ghostliness and further indicate the desolation of the speaker and the scene?

Answer: The colors of the poem are all traditional symbols of death. Black suggests sorrow and
mourning. Red suggests blood and pain. White suggests the absence of color and feeling.
Q. Which specific words connote both spiritual and physical cold and discomfort?

Answers may vary. Examples: “spectre-gray,” “crypt,” “dry,” “bleak,” “frail,” “gaunt,” and
“gloom.”

Q. What essential paradox does the flight and the song of the thrush in the midst of a
moribund landscape present?
Answer: The paradox present is the contrast of life and death, of hope and desolation.

Q. How does Hardy establish a sense of time, place, and mood in this poem?Answer: Hardy
uses specific words to establish the poem’s time, place, and mood. He relies on the senses,
employing touch (“leant”), sight (“weakening eye”), and hearing (“voice arose”).

Q. The image of “The weakening eye of day,” is a metaphor for what?

Answer: The eye of day is a metaphor for the sun.
Q. What surprises the speaker in the middle of this cold winter night?
Answer: In the second stanza, the speaker is surprised to hear a song of “joy illimited” from the
thrush in the middle of such a harsh, cold evening. This further surprises the speaker because
the thrush puts forth such a strong song, yet is such a “frail, gaunt, and small” bird.

Q. What does the speaker feel might be carried in the tune the thrush sings?
Answer: In the final stanza, the speaker says he thinks there may be “Some blessed Hope”
within the thrush’s song. If the thrush can sing of happiness in the cold, dead winter, he believes
perhaps he, too, could find some hope in such a dark time.

Short Questions

Q. Give the name of the weekly that first published Hardy’s The Darkling Thrush?
Ans. The Graphic, a weekly newspaper, first published the poem on December 29, 1900, under
the title “By Century’s Deathbed”.

Q. Identify the season and mood spoken about in The Darkling Thrush?
Ans. When the speaker leaned on a gate before a thicket of small trees, the depressing winter
landscape and the ghostly gray frost made the setting sun seem lonely and abandoned.

Q. What is the theme of The Darkling Thrush?

Ans. Hope amid desolation is the theme of “The Darkling Thrush.” The frail old bird is a
harbinger of spring and his song an expression of joy at a new beginning.

Q. Make a list of the words that signify the speaker’s gloomy mood in “The Darkling
Thrush.”
Ans. The words spectre-gray (line 2), Winter’s dregs (line 3), desolate (line 3) etc. all signify
the gloomy mood of the poet in The Darkling Thrush.

Long Answer Type Questions

Q. Where and when is the poem set? What mood and atmosphere does the setting create?
Ans. The poem “The Dark Thrush” is set at sunset on the last day of the nineteenth century. The
speaker bends towards a wooden gate overlooking the darkening countryside. The atmosphere
induces a tone that is gloomy, somber and depressing, leaving the speaker “fervourless.” The
poet compares the setting sun to “a weakening eye” as night falls, and describes a “desolate”
scene with frost taking over the land as a “corpse” and stems of trees standing “like strings of
broken lyres (harps).” The poem’s time-setting imparts a sense of loss and grief as the day, year
and century end at once and it seems to suggest the end of life and the world as well.The bleak
winter landscape with no development of existence, only the frost that covers the ground and
the wind making funeral music in the forest, is also creepy, spooky and ghostly. The time and
place create a feeling of lifelessness and hopelessness.

Q. Comment on the form and structure of Thomas Hardy’s “The Darkling Thrush” and
discuss how they help to convey the ideas of the poem.
Ans. The poem “The Dark Thrush” follows a traditional form and structure, with four eight-line
stanzas each. The lines are even in length with a set rhyme scheme(i.e. every second line
rhymes), the lines are in length. The regularity mimics the seasonal pattern of nature. While the
poet develops the words into sentences that can go on and take up to four lines, with a full stop,
each stanza is closed. The sense of closure is in keeping with the theme of death articulated in
the poem, where the speaker laments the loss of life and the end of the day, year and century.

Q. Identify the sound effects and devices in Thomas Hardy’s “The Darkling Thrush” and
discuss how they help to present the theme.
Ans. In the poem “The Dark Thrush,” regular rhythms and sound effects, such as assonance,
alliteration and sibilance, are used to convey the themes of death and the rebirth of hope. The
regular rhythm in every second line indicates a sense of stagnantness that fits the “fervorless”
feeling of the speaker that everything is rushing towards death.
In Stanza 1 the assonance of long “e” sounds in various words like “spectre-grey,” “dregs” and
“weakening eye” builds the surrounding eerie atmosphere. The use of alliteration of the rough
“k” sound in words like “corpse,” “crypt” and “cloudy canopy” in Stanza 2 further evokes the
treading of a funeral march, producing a sad tone that fits the speaker’s dull feelings.
Conversely, in Stanza 3, the alliteration of plosive sounds (i.e. “b” and “p” sounds) (e.g. “blast-
beruffled plume”) indicates the bird’s strength and energy against the strong wind. The
sibilance used to characterize the joyful singing of the thrush in “cause for carolings of such
ecstatic sounds” produces a soft music that varies from the harsh sounds used to represent the
bleak wintry atmosphere. The move from using harsh sounds to gentle sounds fits the change in
the emotions of the speaker from sadness to joy, bringing out the comparison of the loss and
rebirth of hope.

Q. Comment on the poetic devices used in the first two stanzas of in Thomas Hardy’s
“The Darkling Thrush” and discuss the effects they create. Comment on the poetic devices
used in the first two stanzas of in Thomas Hardy’s “The Darkling Thrush” and discuss the
effects they create.
Ans. In the poem “The Darkling Thrush”, imagery and comparison (i.e. similes and metaphors)
are extensively used to build the desolate setting and depressing mood. In Stanza 1, the frost is
compared to a grey ghost at dusk that shrouds the land, which creates a ghostly winter scene
associated with death. The setting sun is described as a “weakening eye” and the metaphor of
“dregs” is used to suggest the fading light of dusk. A simile is used when the poet likens the
leafless stems and bare trunks to a broken lyre/harp, showing the barrenness and inability to
produce life and music.
Imagery and analogy (i.e. similes and metaphors) are widely used in the poem to create the
bleak environment and gloomy atmosphere. Throughout Stanza 1, the frost at dusk is compared
to a dark ghost that envelops the ground, producing a ghostly winter scene associated with
death. The setting sun is portrayed as a “weakening eye,” and the “dregs” metaphor is used to
signify dusk’s fading light. A similar is used when the poet likes a broken lyre / harp with the
leafless stems and bare trunks, showing the barrenness and incapacity to create life and music.
Throughout Stanza 2, metaphors are used to equate the landscape with a corpse and the
darkening sky with a tomb that accentuates the spooky atmosphere further. The rich visual,
auditory, and tactile imagery in the poem appeals to the sense of sight, hearing, and touch of the
readers, creating a vivid picture of the eerie countryside in a darkening dusk that helps pose the
theme of death and end.

Q. Comment on diction of Thomas Hardy’s “The Darkling Thrush” and discuss the
effects the use of language creates. Comment on diction of Thomas Hardy’s “The
Darkling Thrush” and discuss the effects the use of language creates.
Ans. In the poem “The Darkling Thrush” it is possible to identify archaic language (e.g.
coppice[ group of trees], spectre [ ghost], dark [ in the dark], lyre [ harp], crypt [ tomb],
unlimited [ limited], near [ near]) and some unusual combinations of words (e.g. death-lament
and “outleant”). The use of archaism reflects the Keatsian lyrical style of the poet, and the
literary romantic tradition to which he belongs. The author uses several single adjectives before
nouns, in addition to the use of archaicism. In Stanzas 1 and 2 several negative adjectives (e.g.,
bleak, fading, twisted, fractured, haunted, gloomy, shrunken, rough, dry, and fervourless) are
used to convey the speaker’s dark feelings and dejected mood. In contrast, in Stanzas 3 and 4,
positive adjectives (e.g. full-hearted, unlimited, growing, ecstatic, happy, blessed) and
sentiment words (e.g., joy, hope) are used to show the speaker’s uplifted spirit after listening to
the joyful singing of the aged thrush.
It is also worth noting that the description of the bird also uses words with religious meanings
(e.g. evensong, spirit, carolings, blesseds). The religious affiliation is accentuated towards the
end of the poem by capitalizing the word “Hope.” The thrush seems to symbolize in nature a
divine power and to be a harbinger of hope.

Extract

Part – 1

(a) Referring closely to the poem ‘The Darkling Thrush’, describe the scene in nature as
depicted by the poet.

Answer : Thomas Hardy beautifully describes the scene in nature in his poem “The Darkling
Thrush’. In order to make it sensuous, he employs concrete imagery. The poet, in a sad mood, is
leaning upon a wooden gate. He is all alone as there is no one else visible at this time of the
hour on a very cold, wintry evening. It is the evening time. The light of the sun is fading fast.
The thick, tangled stems of the climbing plants that line the sky lyres. Frost and winter , it
seems, have made everyone , except the poet, go inside to seek warmth and protection.

It is important to note the use of the image of clouds hanging in the sky which seem to form a
canopy. This dark canopy from above reminds the poet of the death of the century (19th
century).

The land’s sharp features seemed to be

The Century’s corpse outleant,
HIs crypt the cloudy canopy,
The wind its death-lament.
Seeing the clouds in the sky, the poet feels, that the clouds would serve as a tomb for the dead
body of the present century.

The scene in nature, thus, is totally gloomy. The mood in nature corresponds to the poet’s
mood. There is sadness and hopelessness within and without. Perhaps it is the poet who projects
his feelings of sadness on to the scene. But the poet suddenly hears the shrill note of an aged
thrush. The happy note of the thrush is surprising. It indicates that nature cannot be totally
gloomy. The music of nature never dies.

(b) Comment on the significance of the happy song of the thrush in the poem.

Answer : It is important to keep in mind the mood of the poet. The poet is in a gloomy,
hopeless mood. He is thinking of the death of the nineteenth century and is perhaps worried
about the new century that is going to take birth soon. In the nineteenth century all old values
and beliefs had come to be disrupted and undermined by the new scientific and technological
discoveries. The people were unsure of the next century. They had no hope for something
positive in life.

When the poet is lost in these thoughts he suddenly hears a shrill happy note of an old thrush.

The aged bird whose plumes have been battered by the storm is about to die, yet it chooses to
pour out its heart in a forceful manner. It reveals that the music of nature never dies. It is heard
is some way in every situation. Though the poet seems to be confused as to why the bird has
sounded a discordant note, we feel that there is a veiled hint that there is yet some hope and the
new century (20th century ) will come with some good to mankind.

(c) What does the poem ‘The Darkling Thrush’ tell you about man’s relationship with
nature?

Answer : Nature, in whatever form it is conceived in ‘The Darkling Thrush’, seems to reflect
the mood of the poet. At first, it seems there is correspondence between the mood of Nature and
that of the poet. There is utter gloom in Nature. The light of the sun is fading. Frost appears like
a ghost. The clouds in the sky seem to form a canopy. The wind blowing seems to be lamenting
over the death of the century.

What the poet hears suddenly and unexpectedly reveals that Nature wants to convey that
nothing is permanent. The music of nature never dies. The happy shrill note of the thrush in the
utter gloom reminds us that there is no real communication between man and nature. Both are
perhaps indifferent to each other. If Nature seems to be gloomy it is only the projection of the
gloom within the poet’s mind. The poet has failed to interpret Nature properly.

Part – 2

(a) Is ‘The Darkling Thrush’ an elegy? Discuss with close reference to the text of the
poem.
Answer : An elegy is a poem written to lament the death of a poem or a celebrity. ‘The
Darkling Thrush’ may be considered as an elegy, though it does not express any direct sorrow
over the passing of a century (19th century). The speaker in the poem is sad and lonely.
Whatever he sees in Nature is gloomy and desolate, which is symbolic of the old, dying
civilization. There are enough references to death. The light of the setting sun is fading fast. The
whole landscape appears to be grey as a ghost. The stems of climbing plants are reminiscent of
old, broken musical instruments which provide no music. The clouds in the sky seem to form a
canopy which is likened to a tomb. The wind sounds as if giving out a death-lament. The wintry
setting is to remind us of the death of the present century.

There is ghost-like quality attributed to the speaker and even to those who have withdrawn
themselves to the warmth of their fires within the privacy of their homes. The poet finds the
world a bleak, cold place.

The bird in the dark gives out loud, ecstatic sound. What prompts the bird to sing while it is
dying remains obscure to the poet. It provides little hope to the suffering mankind. However, if
we consider this loud ecstatic sound of the bird as a sign of hope in the bleakness we find that
the poem cannot be considered an elegy. The speaker or the poet may not find any signs of
rejuvenation but the bird, as the voice of Nature, contradicts him by underlying the fact that
music of Nature never ceases. If there is Winter, one cannot close one’s eyes to the coming
Spring.

(b) In from ‘The Darkling Thrush’ is a lyric. Comment.

Answer : The poem employs traditional structure. It is a beautiful , regular lyric, divided into
four stanzas, each stanza with the rhyme scheme, ababcdcd. The poet uses mostly perfect
rhymes, though there is use of near rhymes in stanza 3 (“small”, ‘soul’) and in stanza 4
(‘through’, ‘knew’). Most of the rhyming words – ‘grey’, ‘desolate’, ‘sky’, ‘lyres’, ‘fires’,
‘canopy’, ‘evensong’, etc. – are linked to the theme of the poem, and help build up the required
atmosphere.

The rhyme scheme is regular and the metre normal. This creates a tension in the poem. This
regularity clashes with the mood of the poem itself. If everything is wrong and the world is
ending, why should the poet use a regular structure? Does it mean that we should not trust the
speaker?

(c) Write a note on the imagery used in the poem.

Answer : Most of the images used in the poem are concrete and sensuous. Similes and
metaphors are used to build up visual and auditory images before us. The sun is likened to ‘the
eye of the day’. The present century (19th century) is visualized as a corpse, the tomb to which
is provided by the cloudy canopy in the sky. That the whole atmosphere is bleak and barren is
compared by a similie in these lines:
The tangled bine-stems scored the sky
Like strings of broken lyres.

The companion of the tangled stems of bushes which go upward the sky to the broken lyres is
quite apt, as there is no musical sound in the atmosphere. However, the sudden sharp sound of
an old thrush in the dark sounds a contradictory note. This auditory image is used aptly to bring
in the sign of slight hope of something positive in the bleak wilderness.

The poem is, thus, replete with concrete images.