ESSAY: THE VOICE BY THOMAS HARDY

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The poem "The voice" is a touching account of a man's sense of loss and of his difficulty to come to terms with the absence of a loved woman. The narrator, hearing the voice of the woman he loved but who is now absent from his life, addresses her directly and is led to happily and in a very touching way reminisce in the second stanza about his past with her; however, there is then a shift in tone in the third stanza, as he is brought back to earth whilst questioning the probability of really hearing this woman's voice. Finally, in the fourth stanza, we leave him struggling with his sense of loss.

The poem starts with "Woman much missed," thus immediately introducing the notion of a sense of loss. This sense of loss is not an acute pain but rather a soft ache: this impression of softness is emphasized by the use of soft sounds such as "w" and "m" as well as the repetition of "call to me" at the end of the line. The flowing rhythm (the only form of punctuation within the stanza are commas) also suggests that the narrator's thoughts are rather more pleasant than painful. The repetition of "call to me" with its echoing quality also serves to place emphasis on the subject of the narrator's preoccupation: the narrator cannot escape from the woman's voice; it is incessantly present in his mind. In the next three lines, we learn what it is that this voice is saying to the narrator. An opposition is drawn in the state of the poet and the woman's relationship at different times. This opposition is made explicit by the key words "now" (l.2), "when" (l.3 and 4) and "at first" as well as the use of the past and present tenses for instance in "now you are not as you were" (l.2). The woman was "all to me,", then she "changed", and now, she says she has changed again. We do not know the reason why the woman is no more "all to" the narrator until later on in the poem. However what is clear is that the narrator misses the time when "our day was fair." The last word is emphasized by the fact that it does not fit the rhyming pattern that had been set in the first three lines (one expects a word rhyming with "were"). Moreover, as this voice is in the narrator's head, it is highly probable that what it is saying is wishful thinking on his part: he wants things back as they stood "at first."

The 5th line's question "Can it be you that I hear"" confirms the impression that at the back of the narrator's mind, his reason recognizes what the voice is saying as being impossible. This doubt leads to a logical statement "let me see you, then." However, the narrator is not unwilling to listen to the voice of reason: he would rather reminisce, and the ambivalence of the word "then" banishes reason from his mind as he willingly returns to fond memories. The semi-colon followed by the decisive word "yes" (l.7) show that reminiscence has confirmed his desire to see her again. Moreover, the exclamation mark after "Even to the original air-blue gown!" shows the narrator's emotion and how affected he is by his memories.

In the 3rd stanza, the narrator realizes that he has been carried away and returns to being more reasonable. In this stanza, the narrator is suddenly aware of elements around him ( "the breeze", "the wet mead") and of the fact that things cannot change as he had been wishfully thinking beforehand ( this impression is emphasized by the finality in the terms "ever", and "no more again,", and in the terms "far of near"). This finality suggests that his beloved woman is dead and that is why the narrator no longer has such a close relationship with her.

This return to reality is even more strongly marked in the last stanza. Indeed, the rhythm that had up till now been flowing is suddenly halting, as every word practically is stressed (in line 13, "thus I; faltering forward,"). Moreover, the notion of effort is reflected by the word "faltering", by the alliteration in "f"; the narrator probably finds it hard to live on without the woman he loves. There are two ways of interpreting the last line "And the woman calling." Either he is still thinking about his lover, or he is trying to ignore this voice in his head. One can also notice that the woman in no longer directly addressed in this last stanza ("the woman", opposed to "you" in the first two stanzas. This shows that we are not witnessing the narrator's thoughts anymore. Maybe it has become too painful for him to share them with us; maybe his sense of loss is too delicate. Anyhow, we are left with the image of the narrator symbolically struggling against the wind as he is struggling with his overwhelming sense of loss.

In this poem, the poet very effectively and touchingly portrays the pain that comes with the realization that a loved one will never be seen again, that the special relationship that there was has been lost forever. the intensity of the emotion expressed in the poem makes me feel that the narrator is in fact the poet, but the expression of the pain of loss as well as the portrayal of little cherished details in a relationship in the poem are definitely of universal value.

AN INSPECTOR CALLS :How does Priestley show the difference in the older generation and the younger generation?

Priestly aptly conveys the difference in attitude between the older and younger generation, In accordance with Eva Smith’s death. As we can see, Priestly shows the older generation as confident, stylish yet class conscious. On the other hand, the younger generation is aware of their responsibility as being perceptive and not giving in to social segregation. The older generation are represented by the characters Mr Birling in contrast with the younger generation characterised by Sheila, Eric Birling and Gerald Croft.

As seen in Act 1, Mr Birling is extremely selfish. He wants to protect his reputation and safeguard Birling and Co. He does not agree with the younger generation’s viewpoint when they condemn him for firing va Smith. In defiance he says, “Rubbish! If you don’t come down sharply on some of these people, they’d soon be asking for the Earth.”

This clearly shows that he is unable to accept responsibility for his part n Eva Smith’s death. In addition to this, Mr Birling is very proud of his achievement, since he has worked his way up the corporate ladder of success. He is a boastful character who threatens the inspector with his influential connections, so as to make the inspector realise his social standing. This can be observed when he makes a remark to the inspector,“Perhaps I ought to warn you he is an old friend of mine…”

The word ‘warn’ implies a threatening attitude or nature. Mr Birling shows to a less influential person. Further on, we are able to see Mr Birling’s attitude towards Eva Smith. Rather angrily, he comments to Eric,” It’s about time you learn to face a new responsibility.” This implies that Mr Birling expects the younger generation to face responsibility while he prefers to shirk his responsibility.  Through Mr Birling, Priestley is trying to convey to the audience that the older generation is more concerned about their social status in protecting their reputation and is prejudice towards the less fortunate ( Eva Smith). The audience is able to see Mr Birling in negative light as Mr Birling, whose business is actually dependant on the labour class chooses to ignore them.

While Mr Birling and Inspector Goole are continuing their conversation, Eric come in. It is evident that there is tension in Eric’s relationship with his father. Eric is embarrassed and feeling awkward when his father lectures him and Gerald saying, “ A man has to mind his own business and look after himself.” When the Inspector pinpoints that Mr Birling should accept responsibility for Eva Smith’s death, the latter denies the same prompting Eric to sarcastically comment, “ And you were saying that a man has to look after himself.” This shows that Eric is upset with his parents when they refuse to accept responsibility. It is further noticed that Eric Being of the younger generation is open to new ideas and sympathetic towards the working class. He supports Eva Smith as being a good worker because she was aggressive towards her rights as a labourer. Eric says, “ She’d a bit more spirited than the other…” This shows that he supports the worker’s cause and does not believe in class distinction. Priestley tries to show te younger generation with  positive impression as they would have been more sympathetic towards the workers and more humane in their thinking as opposed to the older generation than can only think of profits.

Sheila makes an entry after Eric has made his point clear. Sheila may have considered the condition at the workers. However, she shows compassion instinctively as she is horrified over her father’s treatment of Eva Smith. “But these girl’s aren’t cheap labour – they’re people.” This depicts that Sheila is beginning to change as she sees her father in unfavourable light. Later, Sheila is ashamed by her own part in Eva’s story. She feels full of guilt for her actions and blames herself for being responsible. “…..it was my own fault…I’m telling the truth. I accept you’ve done things you’re ashamed at too” This shows Sheila is able to examine her conscience and be ashamed of her role in Eva’s death. She is wiser because she has admitted her responsibility and accepted her own wrongdoings. Through this, Priestley is able to convey the fact that although the younger generation tend to behave irresponsible towards the lower class women like Eva . They can experience a self -realisation that they are guilty.  As we can see Sheila is full of remorse.

  Gerald knew Daisy Renton when the Inspector mentioned Eva Smith’s name. He is an aristocrat, similar to Mr Birling, who wants to protect his own interest. He is not willing to take responsibility of his hand in the girl’s death because he wants to pretend he never new her. “There is nothing to be concerned,” I’ve never known Eva Smith!” This shows that he feels that if he was to get involved, he will lose his status quo and although he may be sympathetic, he looks at Eva Smith at being a vulnerable woman who could amuse and entertain him. Gerald’s denial plays a crucial part in showcasing class distinction. “I don’t come in this suicide business.” Through this we can see Gerald’s influenced by his aristocratic roots and never examined his conscience by admitting his fault. To him Eva was a mistress who was pretty and could be discarded at will. Priestley is trying to show that the upper classes abused the lower classes without having any moral responsibility. People like Gerald viewed Eva as a mistress because poor women during that time had no choice but to turn to prostitution when they faced a loss of a job.

The inspector acts as a moral mouthpiece to make the audience aware that it is our personal responsibility for our own action. We need to be responsible for the society we live in. Prejudice and arrogance that exists in the older generation prevents them from being socially conscious and taking responsibility for their actions as they are influenced by their status and personal interests. The younger generation are more optimistic as they are open to new ideas and thoughts; sympathise towards the labour force; are honest to admit their faults and lastly are remorseful of their wrongdoings.