I am away this bank Holiday and was surrounded by family all day yesterday which was lovely. That was one of the promps for yesterdays poem! I did not have time to do my poetry challenge but here I am with a few minutes to spare and my brothers computer to use and a fabulous book of poems.
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Thomas Hardy CHRISTMAS 1924
“Peace upon earth” was said.We sing it,
- and pay a million priests to bring it.
After two thousand years of Mass. We’ve got as far as poison -gas.
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Thomas Hardy
Thomas Hardy, OM(2 June 1840 – 11 January 1928) was an English novelist and poet.

photo credits wikipedia
A Victorian realist, in the tradition of George Eliot, he was also influenced both in his novels and poetry by Romanticism, especially by William Wordsworth.[1] Charles Darwin is another important influence on Thomas Hardy.[2] Like Charles Dickens Hardy was also highly critical of much in Victorian society, though Hardy focussed more on a declining rural society. While Hardy wrote poetry throughout his life, and regarded himself primarily as a poet his first collection was not published until 1898. Initially therefore he gained fame as the author of such novels as Far from the Madding Crowd (1874), The Mayor of Casterbridge (1886), Tess of the d’Urbervilles (1891), and Jude the Obscure (1895). However, since the 1950s Hardy has been recognized as a major poet, and had a significant influence on The Movement poets of the 1950s and 1960s, including Phillip Larkin and Elizabeth Jennings.[3] The bulk of his fictional works, initially published as serials in magazines, were set in the semi-fictional region of Wessex and explored tragic characters struggling against their passions and social circumstances. Hardy’s Wessex is based on the medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom and eventually came to include the counties of Dorset, Wiltshire, Somerset, Devon, Hampshire, and much of Berkshire, in south west England.( this Biop is care of Wikipedia as I am not at home I have had to work faster!)
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This short and to the point poem say all there is to say. It highlights the pointlessness of war,the stupidity of the human nature and it’s inability to learn anything. GOD HELP US ALL!
Poetry Challenge #7 is to create a journal of links and your reactions to poems by established (living or dead poets.) Details are here. Example response is here. Mr. Linky for Challenge #7 is directly below:
Aug 27, 2012 @ 10:57:38
Great! Enjoy your time away. 😉
Aug 27, 2012 @ 13:51:28
Nice, I have been to his grave a couple of times as I used to live about 3 miles away, I have a collection of his poems somewhere but never had the time to sit down and read them.
Aug 27, 2012 @ 14:17:54
Well his. Poetry and his prose are well worth the effort. I think he is very talented. I am glad you enjoyed this post. 😉
Aug 27, 2012 @ 14:20:49
I think It was kind of a natures poet?
Aug 27, 2012 @ 14:37:55
I am not so sure about him being a nature’s poet but maybe a natural poet
Aug 27, 2012 @ 15:55:17
WOW that is really hardhitting!!!
Aug 27, 2012 @ 17:03:13
Yes it is, it really hit me too.!
Aug 27, 2012 @ 18:44:58
Lovely of you to choose Thomas Hardy for this challenge!
Aug 27, 2012 @ 18:57:00
Dear Rose I have missed you. I think the poem just says it all!
Sep 02, 2012 @ 13:53:20
A brilliant poem. You could not get better “political poetry”. His novels were fine works too, but what I dislike about them is the sense of the author, masquerading as malign fate, manoevring the main characters so they all suffer a suitably horrible fate.
Sep 02, 2012 @ 13:55:32
Yes I see what you mean and agree I am not keen on that attitude either it is rather self-possessed I wonder what he was like in person? 🙂
Sep 07, 2012 @ 13:04:54
Rather reserved, I think, but sensitive about other people’s reactions – he gave up writing novels after a lot of criticism of one novel.
Sep 07, 2012 @ 18:54:36
so he could dish it out but not take it? 😉
Sep 12, 2012 @ 15:55:36
Maybe, though I think the criticism was that his novels were immoral, something I wouldn’t agree with in the sense the critics meant.
Sep 12, 2012 @ 21:05:47
He was a much misunderstood author.