neutral tones analysis

7/30/2019 Neutral Tones Analysis

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Biography of Thomas Hardy

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 readingand 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 fatherapprenticed 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 thatlived 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 fiveyears 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 newfoundtalent for writing to Dorchester as well.

From 1867, Hardy wrote poetry and novels, though the first part of his career was devoted to thenovel. 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 marryEmma 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 threecollections 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 greatthat Hardy decided to stop writing novels and return to his first great love, poetry.


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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 hispoetry. 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 publishedwhile 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 thepublication 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. Althoughtheir 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


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NEUTRAL TONES

WE stood by a pond that winter day,

And the sun was white, as though chidden of God,

And a few leaves lay on the starving sod,

--They had fallen from an ash, and were gray.

Your eyes on me were as eyes that rove

Over tedious riddles solved years ago;

And some words played between us to and fro--

On which lost the more by our love.

The smile on your mouth was the deadest thing

Alive enough to have strength to die;

And a grin of bitterness swept thereby

Like an ominous bird a-wing....

Since then, keen lessons that love deceives,

And wrings with wrong, have shaped to me

Your face, and the God-curst sun, and a tree,

And a pond edged with grayish leaves.

Thomas Hardy


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Analysis of Neutral Tones

Neutral Tones is an early poem written by Thomas hardy about the end of a relationship or the

parting of two people who were formerly in love.

THE TITLE

Even before reading the poem, one would expect distress, melancholy or themes of depression

and sadness to be highlighted based on the title Neutral Tones. Neutral usually means

without colour. Therefore black, grey, white and brown are usually referred to as neutral tones.

These tones are normally associated with sadness and or depression and are used in describing

despairing situations as portrayed throughout the poem, Neutral Tone. The title also assists in

creating the melancholic note that was intended by the writer to reflect the termination of the

personas relationship.

SUMMARY

The poem, Neutral Tone by Thomas Hardy was written in 1867 and is possibly connected to his

own personal love affair and its termination which is the subject of the poem. In essence it is a

recollection of the ending of a relationship that had gone sour. It starts by describing the drab

setting in which the incident took place using neutral words such as gray, ash and white.

The second stanza spoke briefly about the actual person in the relationship and their feelings

and reaction towards each other and the relationship. The second stanza also highlights the

deteriorating relationship they now have suggested by the lack of affection they portrayed to

each other.

The third stanza on the other is oxymoronic in itself using words that are in total contrast with

each other and emphasize the ending of the relationship through the usage of words such as

death, bitter.

The last stanza identify the fact that the three stanzas were briefly telling a situation that had happened,

simply suggesting that it was a recollection of what had happened then and thus the persona recounting

his past encounters. The last stanzas also highlight the personas feelings towards the ending of the

relationship.

"Neutral Tones" by Thomas Hardy is very neutral in tone;[2] its melancholic note is created by a

narrator reflecting on the termination of a relationship. Throughout, a soothing yet depressing language


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illustrates this duality. Hardy uses a variety of techniques to highlight sadness and emotions in the

narrator.

In the first stanza the scene and atmosphere is set, "we stood byo a pond that winter day".[3] No harsh

sounds are present and the sentence epitomises the tranquillity yet disheartening nature of the poem.

In the second line we get even more of these very "neutral"[4] monosyllabic words "the sun was white,

as though chidden of God"[4] in this sentence the poets attempt to stay within his own themes are very

explicit by the use of the adjective "white"[3] to describe the sun, the sun normally represented by the

colour yellow and a symbol for happiness and life. The very dismal atmosphere is reinforced by the use

of the alliteration of "L"[4] creating a lazy yet unsatisfying tone. The further sibilance of "starving sod"[4]

creates a harsh sound, adding a further layer of hopelessness. The metaphor of the "few leaves"[4]

symbolises the end of an era, hinting towards the dying of life. Yet, it is not life that died, but love.

The next stanza explores deeper into the nature of their relationship: "Your eyes on me were as eyes

that rove over tedious riddles of years ago." This can be interpreted to mean the couple repeat the same

fights without progress, the insignificance of their communication exposed through the tired and morbid

undertone seen in lines such as "And some words played between us to and fro-".[4] This shows

fundamental flaws in their communication, making a meaningful relationship seem impossible.

The first line of the third stanza, in describing her smile, contains a heart-wrenching oxymoron. Normally

a facial gesture associated with happiness and joy, here it is described as "the deadest thing". This

provokes strong emotion in the reader, as the cold causality of the gesture serves as reminder to the

bitterness of the poem. This oxymoronic metaphor continues, having made an impression upon the

reader; it is now described as only "alive enough to have the strength to die". This further enhances the

emotional turmoil inside the reader, presenting a horrifying image of something that just has enough

energy to die, without breaking "neutral tone". This is one of the reasons why this poem is so effective:

distance and neutrality of its language serves as a perfect example of "less is sometimes more".[3]

Another interesting use of symbolism is the "ominous bird a-wing", a possible prolepsis to the final

stanza, the ominous bird representing his now shattered trust, against an almost paganistic suggestion

in "ominous".

The fourth stanza is finally one of total despair; however this is done without breaking the neutral

melancholic tone of the poem. The narrator begins using phrases like "love deceives",[4] indicating an

inner pain and turmoil yet to heal. He goes on to say that he was "shaped" by the "wrings with

wrong",[4] this alliteration shows how much mental anguish he has been through and we get to almost

share his pain. The poem ends as it began, using neutral monosyllabic words. The change in the


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character becomes obvious, instead of referring to the sun as "white",[4] he now refers to it as the

"God-curst sun",[4] reflecting the character's emotions changing from sadness to anger. The final line

"And a pond edged with greyish leaves"[3] echoes the pond the speaker recalls at the beginning.

The fact that the poem ends with "a pond edged with grey leaves" makes it circuitous as it ends at the

pond where the poem is set at the start. Also, the depressed mood of the poem reflects the pessimism

shown by Hardy in much of his poetry work. This pessimism was caused by many things: the

industrialisation of Britain which meant that the traditional way of life in his country roots were lost; the

expansion of the British empire which he opposed; his unhappy first marriage; and his fear and dislike of

change.

neutral tones analysis

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