Hardy's Lyrics : Pearls of Pity

Thomas Hardy frequently insisted that his poems were not self-expressive, but dramatic or 'impersonative'.

Yet biographical expositions have dulled their impersonality.

Brian Green's approach is more exacting and rewarding; taking Hardy at his word, he traces Hardy's 'master theme' throughout the corpus of poems - a governing concern which merges Victorian and perennial ideas throughout the whole of Hardy's writings.