Biography of Thomas Hardy (1840-1928)
Thomas Hardy was
born June 2, 1840, in the village of Upper Bockhampton, located in Southwestern England.
His father was a stone mason and a violinist. His mother enjoyed reading and relating all
the folk songs and legends of the region. Between his parents, Hardy gained all the
interests that would appear in his novels and his own life: his love for architecture and
music, his interest in the lifestyles of the country folk, and his passion for all sorts
of literature.
At the age of
eight, Hardy began to attend Julia Martin's school in Bockhampton. However, most of his
education came from the books he found in Dorchester, the nearby town. He learned French,
German, and Latin by teaching himself through these books. At sixteen, Hardy's father
apprenticed his son to a local architect, John Hicks. Under Hicks' tutelage, Hardy learned
much about architectural drawing and restoring old houses and churches. Hardy loved the
apprenticeship because it allowed him to learn the histories of the houses and the
families that lived there. Despite his work, Hardy did not forget his academics: in the
evenings, Hardy would study with the Greek scholar Horace Moule.
In 1862, Hardy
was sent to London to work with the architect Arthur Blomfield. During his five years in
London, Hardy immersed himself in the cultural scene by visiting the museums and theaters
and studying classic literature. He even began to write his own poetry. Although he did
not stay in London, choosing to return to Dorchester as a church restorer, he took his
newfound talent for writing to Dorchester as well.
From 1867, Hardy
wrote poetry and novels, though the first part of his career was devoted to the novel. At
first he published anonymously, but when people became interested in his works, he began
to use his own name. Like Dickens, Hardy's novels were published in serial forms in
magazines that were popular in both England and America. His first popular novel was Under
the Greenwood Tree, published in 1872. The next great novel, Far from the Madding Crowd
(1874) was so popular that with the profits, Hardy was able to give up architecture and
marry Emma Gifford. Other popular novels followed in quick succession: The Return of the
Native (1878), The Mayor of Casterbridge (1886), The Woodlanders (1887), Tess of the
D'Urbervilles (1891), and Jude the Obscure (1895). In addition to these larger works,
Hardy published three collections of short stories and five smaller novels, all moderately
successful. However, despite the praise Hardy's fiction received, many critics also found
his works to be too shocking, especially Tess of the D'Urbervilles and Jude the Obscure.
The outcry against Jude was so great that Hardy decided to stop writing novels and return
to his first great love, poetry.
Over the years,
Hardy had divided his time between his home, Max Gate, in Dorchester and his lodgings in
London. In his later years, he remained in Dorchester to focus completely on his poetry.
In 1898, he saw his dream of becoming a poet realized with the publication of Wessex
Poems. He then turned his attentions to an epic drama in verse, The Dynasts; it was
finally completed in 1908. Before his death, he had written over 800 poems, many of them
published while he was in his eighties.
By the last two
decades of Hardy's life, he had achieved fame as great as Dickens' fame. In 1910, he was
awarded the Order of Merit. New readers had also discovered his novels by the publication
of the Wessex Editions, the definitive versions of all Hardy's early works. As a result,
Max Gate became a literary shrine.
Hardy also found
happiness in his personal life. His first wife, Emma, died in 1912. Although their
marriage had not been happy, Hardy grieved at her sudden death. In 1914, he married
Florence Dugale, and she was extremely devoted to him. After his death, Florence published
Hardy's autobiography in two parts under her own name.
After a long and
highly successful life, Thomas Hardy died on January 11, 1928, at the age of 87. His ashes
were buried in Poets' Corner at Westminster Abbey