THE DARKLING THRUSH
SUMMARY
On the threshold of a dying century the poet Thomas Hardy stood leaning upon a coppice gate looking on the desolate scene of a wintry, frosty evening. It was twilight time. Everything looked dull and drab. The tangled stems seemed to be the strings of broken lyres. All human beings who were stirring out of doors had returned home to get close to their household fires. The whole landscape appeared to the poet to be the century's corpse.
The sharp features of the landscape had a lurid and cheerless look. The clouds overhanging the sky formed a canopy to serve as a tomb. The wind blowing through the trees seemed to be singing a death song of lamentation. Every living being seemed to have lost passion and buoyancy of spirit. The poet himself was deeply depressed, despirited, dejected.
Everything all around was bleak and dreary. In such a bleak scenario the poet heard the sweet caroling of a thrush pouring out it's music in full throated glee. The joyful bird was producing a lovely evening song expressing a sense of illimitable joy. Though the bird was storm-tossed and exhausted, it continued singing joyously against the backdrop of an all pervading gloom. Nothing on earth, far and near could inspire such a hope in a world of hopelessness. The poet has an optimistic feeling that the thrush - the song bird seemed to inspire the poet with a sublime feeling which will shore up his decaying spirit.
-Pabitra Hansda
nic very helpful
ReplyDeleteThanks
Delete