The poem describes how the normal rhythms of daily life continue despite the upheavals of war. In the first stanza, an old man slowly walks behind an old horse as it harrowing clods. In the second stanza, only thin smoke rises from couch grass, yet daily life will continue as dynasties pass. In the third stanza, a maid and man whisper by, representing how stories of love will outlast stories of war. The overall message is that the simple routines of people's lives carry on regardless of wars or rulers.

1. In Time of ‘The
Breaking of Nations’
By Thomas Hardy

2. Only a man harrowing clods
In a slow silent walk
With an old horse that stumbles and nods
Half asleep as they stalk.
Only thin smoke without flame
From the heaps of couch-grass;
Yet this will go onward the same
Though Dynasties pass.
Yonder a maid and her wight
Come whispering by:
War's annals will cloud into night
Ere their story die.

3. Notes
- The Poem was written by Thomas Hardy, it is dated 1915.
- General attitude of the poem is optimistic, and the idea behind the poem is that
the norms of life carry on despite wars.
- The title ‘The Breaking of Nations’ is from the Old Testament, Jeremiah 51:20
‘Thou art my battle axe and weapons of war: for with thee will I break in pieces
the nations, and with thee will I destroy kingdoms...’
- Can be linked with Birdsong, the fact that both the ideas are that nature and
life will go on despite war.

4. Important:
although written Use of the horse ‘stumbles’
before world war 1, can symbolise the burdens
could been seen that the men carried as they
have links with the marched
men marching
through the mud,
half asleep
Only a man harrowing clods
old used to show
Men had to march through? In a slow silent walk stability, many young
men in war died
With an old horse that stumbles
and nods
link with Dulce et
Decorum est ‘men
Change in rhythm can
emphasise the heaviness
of the walk
Half asleep as they stalk. marched asleep’

5. Thin smoke can be
linked with the gunfire
Overall view of this
in the war
stanza could be that
the British view on the
First World War was Couch-grass is a
that war was to Only thin smoke without flame weed, weeds are
overcome evil. seen as a bad thing.
From the heaps of couch-grass;
use of Jeremiah 51:20
in title, can mean this
stanza is like parable of
the sower?
Yet this will go onward the same
Though Dynasties pass.
The use of Dynasties and ‘Only a man’ in
the First Stanza, can show the contrast
between the two.

6. holds the idea that love
Whispering creates a sense of
stories will outlast stories of
peacefulness.
war
Yonder a maid and her wight
Come whispering by:
use of ‘their’ can
show the many
simple people, who
War's annals will cloud into night
love and work. Can
mean the man at
beginning, and the
maid now. With
Ere their story die.
them life carries on,
through love and
peacefulness.

7. Structure
-The structure is consistent and neat, can represent
the consistency of the ways of life.
- Rhythm is like a folk song, which is the song of
people.

8. Glossary
Dynasties - The Ruling Family. e.g Windsor Family (Royal Family)
Annals - Chronicles/Stories
Yonder - Over There
Wight - A Living Being
Ere - Before
Clods - Mud
Harrow - an agricultural implement