The Going - Settings

This poem does not have a certain setting that the readers can actually visualise. The setting that Thomas Hardy is trying to portray is based on his mental state more than his physical state. He sets the poem within his own thoughts, particularly thoughts of the past and the thoughts of his wife dying. Yes, he remembers actual places like the 'Beeny Crest' where he first met his wife but these are subtle settings that we can visualise only for the moment. The most important thing is what is happening within Hardy's heart and mind, which is where the poem really is set. It is through his heart and mind that he even mentions these places connected to him and his his wife. 'The Going' is a poem portraying melancholy and loss. The poem concentrates on Hardy's feeling of distress, why he had lost his wife and questions of how he could possibly cope with not being able to see her again. His mentality is connected with that of his wife even though he knows his wife is now somewhere that he 'could not follow'. Hardy also shows a feeling of regret and sets himself back to the times when they had their good memories. He dwells on the memory of those places and regrets not making the most of their time together when it was still possible. He says - 'Did we not think of those days long dead, and ere you're vanishing strive to seek that time's renewal?'. The whole poem is set in the past, Hardy's mind and heart going along with it, with no sense of hope, as he says it is 'unchangeable', and no hope of setting himself back to the present to be able to start moving on and forward.