Afterwards Summary & Analysis
by Thomas Hardy

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Published in the 1917 collection Moments of Vision and Miscellaneous Verses, "Afterwards" is one of Hardy's most popular and widely anthologized poems. Wondering how people might remember him when he's gone, the poem's speaker hopes that they will recall his careful observations of nature's "mysteries." The poem suggests that "notic[ing]" and delighting in nature is a meaningful way to spend one's life. For those about to leave the world, moreover, there may be comfort in knowing one's love of the world will live on in others' memories.

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