Works of Thomas Hardy discussion

The Haunter

He does not think that I haunt here nightly :
How shall I let him know
That whither his fancy sets him wandering
I, too, alertly go?—
Hover and hover a few feet from him
Just as I used to do,
But cannot answer the words he lifts me—
Only listen thereto!

When I could answer he did not say them:
When I could let him know
How I would like to join in his journeys
Seldom he wished to go.
Now that he goes and wants me with him
More than he used to do,
Never he sees my faithful phantom
Though he speaks thereto.

Yes, I companion him to places
Only dreamers know,
Where the shy hares print long paces,
Where the night rooks go;
Into old aisles where the past is all to him,
Close as his shade can do,
Always lacking the power to call to him,
Near as I reach thereto!

What a good haunter I am, O tell him,
Quickly make him know
If he but sigh since my loss befell him
Straight to his side I go.
Tell him a faithful one is doing
All that love can do
Still that his path may be worth pursuing,
And to bring peace thereto.

Glossary

words he lifts me - words he throws up to me
thereto - to the thing just mentioned
print long paces - make (paw)prints with their long bounding strides
close as his shade - as close as his shadow

The Haunter is one of a sequence of elegies written by Thomas Hardy after the death of his first wife, Emma. Poems of 1912–13 is part of Hardy's 1914 volume of verse, Satires of Circumstance.

Hardy prefaced the Poems of 1912-13 with the Latin words veteris vestigia flammae, a phrase taken from the poem Aeneid, by Virgil. In Virgil's poem, when Dido, queen of the city of Carthage, is suddenly awakened from a grief stricken emotional slumber, she proclaims, Agnosco veteris vestigia flammae, or I recognise the traces of an ancient fire.

What an atmospheric poem! The voice of Emma again, surely? Emma as a persistent, protecting shade ... my favourite lines are:

"Only dreamers know,
Where the shy hares print long paces,
Where the night rooks go ..."

Thanks for this, Jane - it's now linked in our list.

Hardy is writing in the voice of the woman who is haunting the man she loved. She regrets that she cannot communicate with him now. There were so many times when she was alive that she wanted to talk to him or travel with him, but he ignored her. She realizes that he wants her with him now, but she's unable to be there. It's a sorrowful lament that she cannot change the past, but she's by his side and in his thoughts.

This is a beautiful poem, Jane. While we know Hardy was writing about Emma, it's written so that it could be any spirit that is haunting their lover after a difficult relationship in life.

It's an affecting poem Jane - I like that this poem is told from the perspective of the ghost, not something I usually see. And I like that the ghost in this case is well-meaning and protective of him, despite the missed opportunities she laments.

"How I would like to join in his journeys
Seldom he wished to go."

I see this poem much like Connie does. The poem has straightforward and simple language, but it's very touching.

And how many things we pass by in the busyness our own lives, forgetting that opportunities are limited and that there might be a time when we are no longer be able to do simple things like this, taking journeys with those that we love.

Bionic Jean wrote: "Emma as a persistent, protecting shade ... my favourite lines are:

"Only dreamers know,
Where the shy hares print long paces,
Where the night rooks go."

I was wondering whether there really is a nocturnal bird that the people of Dorset call a Night Rook. In any case, it's perfectly fitting imagery for dreamers.

(What I did find out, though, from the Dorset Wildlife Trust website, is that the collective noun for a group of rooks is a parliament!)

Connie wrote: "It's a sorrowful lament that she cannot change the past, but she's by his side and in his thoughts."

I think you've captured the meaning of the poem perfectly, Connie. It seems Hardy was wrestling with his guilt and desperately wished for Emma to be aware of his remorse. He couldn't escape his memories—he was, in a very real sense, haunted by Emma and the past.

All I can think of is the Dorset Warbler, (another name for the songbird the Dartford warbler, but which lives in Kent). It's not nocturnal though.

Greg wrote: "And how many things we pass by in the busyness our own lives, forgetting that opportunities are limited and that there might be a time when we are no longer be able to do simple things like this, taking journeys with those that we love."

Very true, Greg. It brought a pang to my heart when I realised this was Hardy expressing his need for Emma's forgiveness, so that he may attain the peace he so craved in the last line. Emma is unable to speak to him directly, thus she implores the reader to act as intermediary, to tell him, / Quickly make him know.

Jane wrote: "Very true, Greg. It brought a pang to my heart when I realised this was Hardy expressing his need for Emma's forgiveness, so that he may attain the peace he so craves in the last line. Emma is unable to speak to him directly, thus she implores the reader to act as intermediary, to tell him, / Quickly make him know."

Yes, I think that's true Jane. I feel so much regret and remorse behind and within this poem.

Greg wrote: "The poem has straightforward and simple language, but it's very touching."

You might find this interesting, Greg. The rhyme 'all to him', 'call to him', is carried over into the first stanza of the next poem in the sequence (which is The Voice).

The Haunter

Into old aisles where the past is all to him,
Close as his shade can do,
Always lacking the power to call to him

The Voice

Woman much missed, how you call to me, call to me,
Saying that now you are not as you were
When you had changed from the one who was all to me

Jane wrote: "It seems Hardy was wrestling with his guilt and desperately wished for Emma to be aware of his remorse. He couldn't escape his memories—he was, in a very real sense, haunted by Emma and the.."

I think that's a great description, Jane the remorse is what I picked up on initially too.

I wonder if there isn't also some comfort for Hardy in being "haunted". Usually "haunting" conjures images of scary ghosts or evil sprities, but I imagine its devasting to lose a beloved spouse/partner, perhaps the idea that they are still hanging around is a great comfort.

Bridget wrote: "I wonder if there isn't also some comfort for Hardy in being "haunted"."

Bridget, it may have indeed served a purpose. Hardy certainly needed comfort at the time of writing this poem! It's almost a form of wish-fulfilment, in which an understanding and forgiving Emma is giving him her blessing.

Although Hardy never forgot Emma, I believe things settled down somewhat. Hardy lived for another 15 years after Emma's death; he continued to write poetry, he remarried, he maintained a degree of social activity and he became involved in theatrical productions of his work—he certainly never remained inconsolable. If Hardy was haunted, you could say that the Emma Poems served as a form of exorcism.

Bionic Jean wrote: "All I can think of is the Dorset Warbler, (another name for the songbird the Dartford warbler, but which lives in Kent). It's not nocturnal though."

I somehow missed this comment, Jean. I have heard of the famous Dorset Warbler, but I wasn't aware of its other name (or that Dorset Warblers were immigrants!). A quick Google brings the welcome news that Dorset Warbler numbers are increasing after a threat of near extinction. 😊

I enjoyed this poem very much. While it is about a deceased person and the words that she can no longer say to her love, it feels very warm and uplifting that she continues to be at his side.

Pamela wrote: "While it is about a deceased person and the words that she can no longer say to her love, it feels very warm and uplifting that she continues to be at his side."

Images of closeness—'a few feet from him', 'close as his shade', 'near as I reach', 'straight to his side'—can indeed be wonderfully consoling to the bereaved. Also, I feel 'companion' is such a warm and comforting word:

I companion him to places / Only dreamers know...

The poem has an interesting rhyme scheme which includes the repetition of the ending words in the same lines in all four stanzas. The repetition helps tie the parts of the poem together:

Line 2 always ends in "know"
Line 4 always ends in "go"
Line 6 always ends in "do"
Line 8 always ends in "thereto" -- such a perfect archaic word that's so typical of Hardy.

I was also noticing that the word "he" is used 9 times, "him" 11 times, and "his" 5 times. This emphasizes that it's that man who is haunted -- not a haunted house, the haunted air, or the haunted woods. The ghost is accompanying him everywhere since she is in his thoughts. In addition to the warm words that Jane mentioned above, the poem does end on a healing note, "And to bring peace thereto."

Thanks for sharing this lovely poem, Jane.

Connie wrote: The poem has an interesting rhyme scheme which includes the repetition of the ending words in the same lines in all four stanzas..."

Great observations, Connie! Much of Hardy's poetry was written on the cusp of the Modernist movement, yet the occasional archaic word is to be expected. I want to call Hardy The Last Great Victorian.

Jane wrote: "If Hardy was haunted, you could say that the Emma Poems served as a form of exorcism."
I think we torture our ghosts when we cling to them too much, because they suffer to see us suffer so - this is why this kind of exorcism might actually be setting the ghost free.

A very poignant poem; thank you, Jane, and everybody!

Plateresca wrote: ".I think we torture our ghosts when we cling to them too much, because they suffer to see us suffer so - this is why this kind of exorcism might actually be setting the ghost free."

Hi, Plateresca! Yes, it does seem to be interconnected. Rest in peace, Thomas and Emma.