Thomas Hardy
1840 - 1928
Thomas hardy was born in Upper Brockhampton, near Dorchester, England. He was educated locally and at 16 was articled to an architect. At 22 he went to London to train as an architect, and returned home in 1867 to pursue his chosen profession. But he had already begun his first novel The Poor Man and the Lady, which was never published.
There is speculation that around this time he met and fell in love with Tryphena Sparks, to whom he was related. The nature of their relationship is unclear but 1868 he was sent to St. Juliot, Cornwell, where he met Emma Gifford, whom he married in 1874. This marriage was far from idyllic, but ,ironically, when Emma died in 1912 Hardy was moved to write some of the most moving love poems in the English language.
Among his best novels are The return of the Native(1878), The Mayor of Casterbridge(1886) and Tess of the D’Urbervilles(1891). After the critical reception of Tess of the D’Urbervilles and Jude the Obscure(1895), which were publicly attacked for their subject matter and portrayal of sexual relationships, Hardy turned his attention to poetry, which he had always regarded as superior to fiction.