Wessex Poems and other Verses

Hardy published his first volume of poetry, Wessex Poems, in 1898. This was a collection of poems written over 30 years. Hardy claimed poetry as his first love, and published collections until his death in 1928. Although not as well received by his contemporaries as his novels, Hardy's poetry has been applauded considerably in recent years, in part because of the influence on Philip Larkin. Faced with various disappointments in love and life he frequently returns to the themes mankind's long struggle against indifference to human suffering..