This line you wrote about how he died made me gasp out loud: “the sudden shock of a passing shell left him otherwise unscathed, but stopped his heart.”
Thanks, Jackie! Yeah, such a shockingly sudden death. And so sad that he had only just started to write poetry - his first collection of poems was published posthumously.
I love the writing of Edward Thomas and am especially fond of "As the Team's Head Brass", which captures a lost world of men working on the fields. Do you know "Old Man" ? I grow it by my back door in remembrance of Thomas.
Love that one too! At heart, Edward Thomas was such a nature-loving romantic. And some of his poems are brilliant. It was so tragic that modern life left him feeling like a failure. And that he died so young. 🌿💔
So refreshing to read a different kind of war poet. I love Edward Thomas' rhyming verse and his exploration of conversational poetry. How very sad that he died so young and in the line of duty.
Edward Thomas was such a troubled but fascinating character. And I particularly love his poem 'The Other' - it's so arresting (almost cinematic) and strange! The short entries in his little war diary are unbearably poignant too. I'm sure he intended to transform those into poems someday. 💔
Such a complex and melancholy character; the alter ego from 'The Pursuit of Spring' still pursuing Thomas in 'The Other '. I've always found the contrast between the war and the matter of fact aspects of 'As the Team's Head Brass' like the lack of teams, the blizzard and not being able to move the tree, show the effects civilian life so much more effectively than talking about weeping family members would have done.
Edward Thomas was such a unique poet - he had such an idiosyncratic style. So tragic that he was just beginning to find his voice when he died. He left behind some wonderful poems though.
Moving and beautiful, James! I don’t know these poems, so this was a treat. That historical gap you describe between Victorian and modern is really interesting — ie the romance of nature meeting the new rhythms of everyday speech, then the darkness of war. Thanks for sharing this.
Thanks, Victoria. Great to hear that you enjoyed it! And, yeah, the way poets like Edward Thomas acted as a sort of bridge between the Victorians and modernists is really fascinating. ✨️
I came to know Edward Thomas and his life through Robert Macfarlane's book "The Old Ways". The bibliography at the end of the book seemed intimidating at the time and I have only read just a few poems of his ever since. Thank you for reminding him to me, I am going to search for the "Selected Poems".
Adlestrop is one of my favourite poems. It's hard to explain why it is so memorable and famous, but just essentially English summer in every line...
Love that one too! It's so radiant and peaceful - captures those moments of bliss on an English summer's day. 🌿✨️
Great post, James. Thank you.
This line you wrote about how he died made me gasp out loud: “the sudden shock of a passing shell left him otherwise unscathed, but stopped his heart.”
Thanks, Jackie! Yeah, such a shockingly sudden death. And so sad that he had only just started to write poetry - his first collection of poems was published posthumously.
I love the writing of Edward Thomas and am especially fond of "As the Team's Head Brass", which captures a lost world of men working on the fields. Do you know "Old Man" ? I grow it by my back door in remembrance of Thomas.
Love that one too! At heart, Edward Thomas was such a nature-loving romantic. And some of his poems are brilliant. It was so tragic that modern life left him feeling like a failure. And that he died so young. 🌿💔
So refreshing to read a different kind of war poet. I love Edward Thomas' rhyming verse and his exploration of conversational poetry. How very sad that he died so young and in the line of duty.
Edward Thomas was such a troubled but fascinating character. And I particularly love his poem 'The Other' - it's so arresting (almost cinematic) and strange! The short entries in his little war diary are unbearably poignant too. I'm sure he intended to transform those into poems someday. 💔
Such a complex and melancholy character; the alter ego from 'The Pursuit of Spring' still pursuing Thomas in 'The Other '. I've always found the contrast between the war and the matter of fact aspects of 'As the Team's Head Brass' like the lack of teams, the blizzard and not being able to move the tree, show the effects civilian life so much more effectively than talking about weeping family members would have done.
Edward Thomas was such a unique poet - he had such an idiosyncratic style. So tragic that he was just beginning to find his voice when he died. He left behind some wonderful poems though.
He did indeed, as well as some lovely prose on nature and rural life, a poignant study of a way of life that was ended by the war.
Moving and beautiful, James! I don’t know these poems, so this was a treat. That historical gap you describe between Victorian and modern is really interesting — ie the romance of nature meeting the new rhythms of everyday speech, then the darkness of war. Thanks for sharing this.
Thanks, Victoria. Great to hear that you enjoyed it! And, yeah, the way poets like Edward Thomas acted as a sort of bridge between the Victorians and modernists is really fascinating. ✨️
I came to know Edward Thomas and his life through Robert Macfarlane's book "The Old Ways". The bibliography at the end of the book seemed intimidating at the time and I have only read just a few poems of his ever since. Thank you for reminding him to me, I am going to search for the "Selected Poems".
Thanks, Fotini. You can also read quite a few of Edward Thomas’s poems for free on the Poetry Foundation’s website https://www.poetryfoundation.org/ ✨
I didn’t know about Edward Thomas so thank you for the introduction. I love Wilfred Owen and that whole period of literature.
Thanks, LeeAnn! Great to hear that you enjoyed this post. 🌿✨️
A super poet. Thank you for this thoughtful and moving tribute to him!
Thanks, Jeffrey! Love his poems. ✨️