HARDY FORUM ARCHIVE H03056 6/4/03 "JUNE 2003 NOTES AND QUERIES"
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From: "BRIAN DEVONALD" <BRIAN@devonaldspace.freeserve.co.uk>
Subject: APPROACHES TO HARDY
Date: Wed, 4 Jun 2003 14:55:50 +0100

A ) I am fully aware of the differing sensibilities of the FORUM members including the latest approach of: THOMAS HARDY ACTIVITIES,1903.How anything stated is,or isn't, commented upon by whatever individual. My approach is to offer angles on Hardy that others don't consider in that - VARIETY IS THE SPICE ON HARDY'S LIFE B) If it was possible to meet Thomas Hardy and I was allowed only one question to ask him it would be: Do you ever see yourself as being very mysterious Mr Hardy? If others were allowed only ONE question to ask him what would it be? C) Any sort of question can have some sort of validity although some are,obviously,stupid such as: What did Thomas Hardy think of Elvis Presley? However, What did Elvis Presley think of Thomas Hardy? is just within the realms of possibilty. Who knows someone,somewhere,COULD have an answer... Brian Devonald

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From: "ramzy raouf" <ramzy_raouf@hotmail.com>
Subject: The hidden aim of the tess of The d'urbervilles
Date: Fri, 06 Jun 2003 12:34:36 +0000

was the hidden aim of the tess of d'urbervilles that TH shows his thoughts
about religion & aesthiticism ?

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From: "Vincenzo Vivona" <vinvivo@tin.it>To: <HARDY-L@csusm.edu>
Subject: roses for TH
Date: Wed, 25 Jun 2003 01:18:35 +0200

Hi It's a pleasure for everyone of us to know there are a lot of Hardian roses : The mayor of Casterbridge, Tess of the D'Ubervilles, Jude the Obscure, and they are all " English roses". I'm trying to imagine what will be next: Sue Bridehead... or....who knows Cheers vincenzo vivona

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From: "Gary Alderson" <Gary.Alderson@btinternet.com>
Subject: Re: roses for TH
Date: Wed, 25 Jun 2003 06:00:20 +0100

Surely the Mayor of Casterbridge was a climber (to start with...)


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From: "Patrick Roper" <patrick@prassociates.co.uk>
Subject: Nettles & midges
Date: Mon, 30 Jun 2003 17:41:51 +0100

There was a programme on BBC Radio 4 last week about the midsummer
nettle-eating competition in the 16th century Bottle Inn in Marshwood,
Dorset that sounded as though it came straight from Under-the-Greenwood-Tree
Land. There are some details here:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/low/england/2047131.stm

and here:

http://www.visitengland.com/visitengland/experience/nettleeating.htm

I am sure Hardy would have enjoyed such goings on.

Inspired by this I looked up various Hardyan references to nettles and
stinging things and came across the lines from the Trampwoman's tragedy "Had
crossed the Yeo unhelped by bridge,/Been stung by every Marshwood midge".

As chance would have it, someone was telling me a week or so ago about the
Blandford fly. This, apparently was a quite prevalent Dorset biter and is a
species of Simulium or blackfly (buffalo midge in parts of North America I
think). There are some details on the Blandford fly here:

http://www.badgerbrewery.com/local/flyl.htm

The info comes from the Badger brewery of Dorset who make a 'Blandford fly
ale': 'biter bitter' perhaps.

The juxtaposition of the river Yeo with the Marshwood midge in the poem
implies the biters might have been water-breeders and I wonder if TH thought
of Blandford flies as Marshwood midges: he must have encountered them, and
many other midges too.

Patrick Roper

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Date: Mon, 30 Jun 2003 20:32:26 -0400
From: Rosemarie Morgan <rosemarie.morgan@yale.edu>
Subject: Re: Nettles & midges


This is marvellous!

Thank you Patrick.

Now we know where Monty Python *really* lives:
in the British House of Lords.


Cheers,
Rosemarie


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