Thomas Hardy's philosophy of Life
By Muhammad Hamza Irfan Hashmi
Thomas Hardy is one of the greatest novelists of the latter Victorian era. His popularity mainly rests on his peculiar philosophy of life. Although he is not a philosopher in the strict sense of the word yet he poses to be one insisting on the dark and gloomy aspect of life. Thomas Hardy is generally regarded as a pessimist though he does not like this title and insists that he is an ameliorate and not a pessimist. The question arises why he paints gloomy picture of life. Probably Hardy is a dark minded person. He seldom participated in marriage ceremonies but seldom missed funeral. His unhappy issueless married life also gave dark and gloomy touch to his thinking. Moreover, his loss of faith in God did serious damage to his thinking. As a result, he came to believe that we live on a planet which is blind in its movement and blighted and it is ruled by a dark force which often operates in the form of chances and coincidences. Hardy does not accept the concept of free will. He opines that man is bound to live an unhappy life generally. Happiness is an occasional episode in the general drama of pain in Hardy’s world. In Hardy's view man has to suffer because of the malignity of the dark arbitrary force. When his conflicts with his fellow human beings fail to bring about disaster in life, the ruling force operates in the form of impish chance. His aspiring people such as Tess, Jude, Bathsheba, suffer much because of the impish role of chances. Some critics opine that Hardy is a fatalist. The title seems to be apt as fate plays mighty and decisive role in his world. Fate does serious damage to mankind in the shape of arbitrary chance. At times it achieves its destructive goal in the form of past actions. For example, his Tess suffers much because her past action does not allow her to live happy life. She is haunted by it till her tragic hanging. Sometimes fate assumes the form of nature in Hardy. Nature in his world is not always colorful and musical. At times it is red in tooth and claw. In the Return nature brings about the destruction of leading characters such as Mrs Yeobright, Eustacia and Wildeve. In Hardy charters are put in unfavorable situation where they are bound to suffer. For instance, Eustacia is forced to live drab and dull life in Egdon village which she hates and seems it to be her cross, her shame and her death. Similarly, Tess finds herself in incongruous situation and comes across the wrong person at the wrong time in the form of Alec who seduces her sowing the seeds of her destruction. Some people call Hardy to be a determinist and the title doesn't look illogical for the leading characters in his world play decisive role in their tragic downfall. Henchard's pig headedness, Bathsheba's capriciousness and Tess’s innocence do cause suffering in their life and the life of their near ones. Their role however is less significant than the role of fate. After the reading of Hardy's novel we seem to agree with German philosopher Schopenhauer that we can do what we will but we can't will what we will.
Thomas Hardy is one of the greatest novelists of the latter Victorian era. His popularity mainly rests on his peculiar philosophy of life. Although he is not a philosopher in the strict sense of the word yet he poses to be one insisting on the dark and gloomy aspect of life. Thomas Hardy is generally regarded as a pessimist though he does not like this title and insists that he is an ameliorate and not a pessimist. The question arises why he paints gloomy picture of life. Probably Hardy is a dark minded person. He seldom participated in marriage ceremonies but seldom missed funeral. His unhappy issueless married life also gave dark and gloomy touch to his thinking. Moreover, his loss of faith in God did serious damage to his thinking. As a result, he came to believe that we live on a planet which is blind in its movement and blighted and it is ruled by a dark force which often operates in the form of chances and coincidences. Hardy does not accept the concept of free will. He opines that man is bound to live an unhappy life generally. Happiness is an occasional episode in the general drama of pain in Hardy’s world. In Hardy's view man has to suffer because of the malignity of the dark arbitrary force. When his conflicts with his fellow human beings fail to bring about disaster in life, the ruling force operates in the form of impish chance. His aspiring people such as Tess, Jude, Bathsheba, suffer much because of the impish role of chances. Some critics opine that Hardy is a fatalist. The title seems to be apt as fate plays mighty and decisive role in his world. Fate does serious damage to mankind in the shape of arbitrary chance. At times it achieves its destructive goal in the form of past actions. For example, his Tess suffers much because her past action does not allow her to live happy life. She is haunted by it till her tragic hanging. Sometimes fate assumes the form of nature in Hardy. Nature in his world is not always colorful and musical. At times it is red in tooth and claw. In the Return nature brings about the destruction of leading characters such as Mrs Yeobright, Eustacia and Wildeve. In Hardy charters are put in unfavorable situation where they are bound to suffer. For instance, Eustacia is forced to live drab and dull life in Egdon village which she hates and seems it to be her cross, her shame and her death. Similarly, Tess finds herself in incongruous situation and comes across the wrong person at the wrong time in the form of Alec who seduces her sowing the seeds of her destruction. Some people call Hardy to be a determinist and the title doesn't look illogical for the leading characters in his world play decisive role in their tragic downfall. Henchard's pig headedness, Bathsheba's capriciousness and Tess’s innocence do cause suffering in their life and the life of their near ones. Their role however is less significant than the role of fate. After the reading of Hardy's novel we seem to agree with German philosopher Schopenhauer that we can do what we will but we can't will what we will.
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