Thomas Hardy, The Trumpet Major

Tracy Hayes (Independent Scholar - Europe)
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Only one of Thomas Hardy’s novels focuses on the idea of military masculinity - 

The Trumpet-Major 

(1880). Invariably dismissed by critics both in Hardy’s time and today as his weakest novel, Richard Nemesvari goes so far as to liken 

The Trumpet-Major

 to “a Jane Austen novel run slightly out of control” (p. 10). However, Hardy’s research into the military during the reign of George III in preparation for this novel was extensive. He compiled a notebook of more than one hundred and twenty pages, containing detailed descriptions of the movements of the Royal Family when they visited Weymouth between 1783 and 1807 – the years comprising the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars, and the concomitant threat of invasion. The notebook records army exercises and deployments…

3238 words

Citation: Hayes, Tracy. "The Trumpet Major". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 15 December 2022 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=7990, accessed 29 March 2024.]

7990 The Trumpet Major 3 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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