“A Merciful Man”: Thomas Hardy and the Thinking of (in)Humanity
This paper approaches the subject of Hardy as a thinker of humanity through his response to what was often the inhuman treatment of animals. Registered in scenes like the pig-killing chapter in Jude the Obscure, later reprinted by the Victorian Society for the Protection of Animals under the title “...
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| izdano v: | URI:https://journals.openedition.org/fathom, |
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| Format: | Article ou chapitre numérique |
| Jezik: | Anglais |
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FATHOM
2017
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| Online dostop: | Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM |
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openedition-oai:revues.org:fathom_619 |
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openedition-oai:revues.org:fathom_619 https://doi.org/10.4000/fathom.619 urn:doi:10.4000/fathom.619 en https://journals.openedition.org/fathom/619 2017-03-10T01:00:00Z info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess article info:eu-repo/semantics/article urn:handle:20.500.13089/gaif All rights reserved “A Merciful Man”: Thomas Hardy and the Thinking of (in)Humanity FATHOM Association française sur les études sur Thomas Hardy info:eu-repo/semantics/reference/issn/2270-6798 URI:https://journals.openedition.org/fathom Tait, Adrian humanity inhumanity biophilia kinship Darwin (Charles) animal cruelty This paper approaches the subject of Hardy as a thinker of humanity through his response to what was often the inhuman treatment of animals. Registered in scenes like the pig-killing chapter in Jude the Obscure, later reprinted by the Victorian Society for the Protection of Animals under the title “A Merciful Man”, Hardy’s work reflects a deep-rooted biophilia. This was in part shaped by his immersion in the latest thinking of his age. From Darwin, in particular, he took a sense of kinship with all living things, and a profound appreciation of the richness and diversity of life. At the same time, Hardy instinctively recoiled from any form of cruelty. This was, however, a moment in history when animals were made subject to unprecedented new levels of exploitation and manipulation. Nor was the inhumanity of this kind of treatment – this process of instrumentalization – confined to non-humans, as Hardy underlined in novels like Tess of the d’Urbervilles. Whilst Hardy’s own thoughts were not always fully worked out, even when, as in novels like The Hand of Ethelberta, his imagination conjured extraordinary scenes of animal suffering, his later work suggests a growing willingness to censure cruelty, and an expansive sense of what might be meant by humanity and humanitarianism. Notwithstanding his own pessimism about the trajectory of human “progress”, and its apparent pursuit of the material at the expense of the moral, this forms an important (if sometimes neglected) aspect of his work. Cet article aborde la pensée hardyenne de l’humanité au prisme de la représentation par Hardy du traitement inhumain des animaux. Son œuvre révèle une profonde biophilie (amour du vivant), comme le montre la scène où le cochon est tué dans Jude the Obscure – scène réimprimée plus tard par la société victorienne pour la protection des animaux sous le titre “A Merciful Man”. Cette biophilie a été en partie inspirée à Hardy par les pensées les plus novatrices de son temps. À Darwin, en particulier, il a emprunté l’idée d’une parenté entre tous les êtres vivants et une conception profonde de la diversité de la vie. En même temps, Hardy répugnait naturellement à toute forme de cruauté, à un moment de l’histoire où les animaux étaient soumis à un niveau sans précédent d’exploitation et de manipulation. L’inhumanité de ce type de traitement – ce processus d’instrumentalisation – n’était d’ailleurs pas réservé aux non humains, comme l’a souligné Hardy dans Tess of the d’Urbervilles. Cette œuvre tardive suggère une volonté grandissante de condamner la cruauté et une perception approfondie de ce que signifient humanité et humanitarisme. Malgré le pessimisme de Hardy à l’égard de la trajectoire du progrès humain et sa recherche apparente du matériel aux dépens du moral, cela constitue un aspect important de son œuvre, bien qu’il soit parfois négligé. |
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OpenEdition Journal |
| language |
Anglais |
| format |
Article ou chapitre numérique |
| building |
0/Bibliothèque numérique/ 1/Bibliothèque numérique/OpenEdition Journals/ |
| topic |
humanity inhumanity biophilia kinship Darwin (Charles) animal cruelty |
| spellingShingle |
humanity inhumanity biophilia kinship Darwin (Charles) animal cruelty Tait, Adrian “A Merciful Man”: Thomas Hardy and the Thinking of (in)Humanity |
| description |
This paper approaches the subject of Hardy as a thinker of humanity through his response to what was often the inhuman treatment of animals. Registered in scenes like the pig-killing chapter in Jude the Obscure, later reprinted by the Victorian Society for the Protection of Animals under the title “A Merciful Man”, Hardy’s work reflects a deep-rooted biophilia. This was in part shaped by his immersion in the latest thinking of his age. From Darwin, in particular, he took a sense of kinship with all living things, and a profound appreciation of the richness and diversity of life. At the same time, Hardy instinctively recoiled from any form of cruelty. This was, however, a moment in history when animals were made subject to unprecedented new levels of exploitation and manipulation. Nor was the inhumanity of this kind of treatment – this process of instrumentalization – confined to non-humans, as Hardy underlined in novels like Tess of the d’Urbervilles. Whilst Hardy’s own thoughts were not always fully worked out, even when, as in novels like The Hand of Ethelberta, his imagination conjured extraordinary scenes of animal suffering, his later work suggests a growing willingness to censure cruelty, and an expansive sense of what might be meant by humanity and humanitarianism. Notwithstanding his own pessimism about the trajectory of human “progress”, and its apparent pursuit of the material at the expense of the moral, this forms an important (if sometimes neglected) aspect of his work. |
| author |
Tait, Adrian |
| author_facet |
Tait, Adrian |
| author_sort |
Tait, Adrian |
| title |
“A Merciful Man”: Thomas Hardy and the Thinking of (in)Humanity |
| title_short |
“A Merciful Man”: Thomas Hardy and the Thinking of (in)Humanity |
| title_full |
“A Merciful Man”: Thomas Hardy and the Thinking of (in)Humanity |
| title_fullStr |
“A Merciful Man”: Thomas Hardy and the Thinking of (in)Humanity |
| title_full_unstemmed |
“A Merciful Man”: Thomas Hardy and the Thinking of (in)Humanity |
| title_sort |
“a merciful man”: thomas hardy and the thinking of (in)humanity |
| publisher |
FATHOM |
| publishDate |
2017 |
| container_title |
URI:https://journals.openedition.org/fathom |
| url |
https://ezproxy.univ-orleans.fr/login?url=https://doi.org/10.4000/fathom.619 https://ezproxy.univ-orleans.fr/login?url=https://journals.openedition.org/fathom/619 |
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