The "Graveyard School" poets include Thomas Parnell, Thomas Warton, Thomas Percy, Thomas Gray, James MacPherson, Robert Blair, William Collins, Mark Akenside, Joseph Warton, Henry Kirke White and Edward Young.
p>Representative works include Thomas Parnell's A Night-Piece on Death
Edward Young's Night Thoughts and Blair's The Grave
Thomas Gray's Elegy in a Country Churchyard
Thomas Gray (1716-1771), an important British poet in the 18th century, was also an important poet in the late British neoclassicism.
Gray wrote few poems in his lifetime, and only about ten poems have been handed down to the world. Among them, "Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard" (1750) is the most famous. This poem took eight years to compose. It was originally written to mourn his friend Richard West when he was studying at Eton College. At least the "epitaph" attached at the end of the poem was written for him. But looking at the whole poem, its content has obviously gone beyond mourning for a specific person, but expresses deep sympathy for the unknown people at the bottom through the description of a cemetery in the countryside. It praises their simple and kind character and regrets that they have no chance to display their talents and talents. It also expresses contempt and ridicule for the powerful and the vanity of the world, and condemns the arrogant and luxurious life of the big shots. This poem fully embodies Gray's democratic thoughts. Due to poverty, farmers could not develop their talents and become writers like John Milton or politicians like Oliver Cromwell. But on the other hand, there is no "ambition", "arrogance", "arrogance", "luxury" and "flattery" in them. Although they are "barren" and have no knowledge, they have "virtue" and "conscience". They are nature itself. Such thoughts and the sentimental mood permeating the whole poem make "Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard" (1750) a model of sentimental poetry in the late 18th century.
The reason why "Graveyard Elegy" has been favored by commentators of all ages. Because "first, it condenses a certain social emotion in a period; secondly, it expresses this emotion in a relatively complete form, solves the problem of how to innovate old traditions to a certain extent, and has a high artistic level." Achievement".
From the poem "Graveyard Elegy", we can see the transition of British poets from neoclassicism to romanticism. On the one hand, Gray's poetic language is exquisitely crafted and conforms to the requirements of poetic vocabulary advocated by neoclassicism. On the other hand, his poetry expresses the romantic desire for nature and the harmonious relationship between people. The combination of the two is used to express a deep sadness, making the description of eternal truth pursued by classicists. This lament, which has always been the case throughout the ages, is framed in a beautiful poetic form, and has even more touching power.
"Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard" (1750) "Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard". It is a meditation on the brevity of life, and it is on this poem that he built his reputation. He and a group of friends wrote many poems on such themes, so they were called The Graveyard School by later generations.