Compare the bay and he never expected much as studies in pessimism that stem from different causes, one that is internal and one that is external

The poets both explore ideas dealing with pessimism but from two very different angles, which reflect their view on life. Baxter seems to regret any happiness that he had when he was a child because now after he has lost everything, those memories are so difficult to deal with, that he would have preferred not ever experiencing them. This shows a very negative; regret filled pessimism something Baxter can be never be at peace with because it is an internal pessimism eating away at him. Hardy on the other hand has a relatively more positive form of pessimism that is external; hardship which life has inflicted on him and suffering that he has accepted because he was always prepared for it since he was a child.

Baxter starts by providing a seemingly beautiful description of his childhood, “On the road to the bay was a lake of rushes”. This is a positive and uplifting beginning with words such as, “rushes”, “lake” and “bay” creating a scenic calming image of a water body amidst beautiful surroundings and maybe a soft breeze, but there is also a sense of foreboding created here. “The lake of rushes” represents a diversion on the road to the “bay” which is the real goal. These diversions in life can turn out for the worse as the following ominous language seems to suggest, by expressing his experience of life; something that started of with hope and happiness but quickly turned dark and hopeless as he forgot his roots and what had nurtured him, “how many roads we take that lead to nowhere”. This line creates the idea that forgetting your goals or your roots can result in dead ends and suffering. Language such as, “alley overgrown”,“loss”, “not that veritable garden where everything comes easy,” emphasizes this idea of the grief and suffering that can result from treading off your path. The phrase, “alley overgrown” creates an ominous image of a dark dangerous alley, where things have grown out of control and the weeds have taken control.

In the next stanza Baxter relives and remembers his childhood almost affectionately, but again dark and ominous signs loom up in the language, as if there is a great disaster waiting to happen. Something that Baxter was unable to see at that time and now regrets his ignorance about it. This can be seen in his use of, “growing cold in amber water”, he didn’t know it at the time but all this beauty around him was something that could not last forever and something that he would forsake and later on regret forgetting. The binary opposition of “cold” and “amber” helps increase this sense of queasiness and uncertainty as the two words don’t fit together properly due to the conflicting images of cold and warmth they create. This horrifying idea of letting go of his roots and happiness manifests itself in the form of the terrible, “taniwha” sea monster, which creates a terrifying image in my mind, because it is an evil I cannot picture or relate to in my head, making it seem even more mysterious and dangerous.

Throughout the poem references are constantly made towards Maori cultue, which was a part of Baxter’s background. All his happiness seems to be related to that ancient culture and part of his pessimism stems from losing it all and doing nothing to stop that loss. His love for the Maori culture can be seen in, “cliff with carved names’ which has a historical almost mythical air of epic legend being “carved” on the scrolls of time, and “Maori ovens” which spikes my curiosity as to this long lost way of life. The most enjoyable times of his life seemed to have been spent in the beautiful “autumnal shallows besides the “pumice creek banks”, all showing me the great love he had for his culture and roots because of the beautiful descriptive imagery and language used.

Looking back Baxter now wishes that he had been more aware of what life had in store for him. He regrets the fact that nothing had prepared him for the suffering he would have to endure later on because of forgetting his roots. These warning signs, which he missed, can be seen in, “so now I remember the bay and the little spiders on drift wood, so poisonous and quick” the use of the words “spiders” poisonous and quick creates a uncertain feeling of danger due to the deathly ideas associated with them. Baxter now realizes that there were signs even when everything seemed perfect, warning him about the future, signs, which he missed out on.

Baxters final resigned and desperate internal pessimism can be seen in his wish to never have lived through those beautiful memories, because now the very thought of what he has lost and forsaken is enough to destroy him, “a thousand times an hour is torn across and burned for the sake of going on living”. This is a very powerful line showing the extent of his internal pessimism about his present condition of life and his views on the past. His memories are related to sheets of paper being, “torn” and burnt in order to allow himself to, “go on living” the past is too much for him to handle, what he has lost. The harsh sound of the “r" in, “torn” “across” and “burned” helps to emphasize this, misery along with the huge number, “a thousand times” to show the extent of his suffering.
Baxter’s resignation to this fate and his final pessimism can be seen in the line, “but I remember the bay that never was and stand like a stone and cannot turn away”. The simile “like a stone” shows me how horrifying his past memories are because he misses them so desperately and regrets losing what he had. He is so mortified and pessimistic about his current situation that “he can not turn away” and wishes that his childhood had never happened because he wouldn’t be able to long for it or deal with losing his roots in the “bay that never was”. This show me a deep-seated internal pessimism so corrupting that Baxter wants to forget the happiest moments of his life in order to stop the torment that his burning in his soul.

He never expected much, on the other hand, doesn’t deal with such a destructive internal pessimism but explores a pessimistic attitude that has been created by the world around the author, something he had always expected and has learned to accept and can thus be at peace with.

Hardy shows that he expected life to be difficult by saying, “never I own expected I that life would all be fair” ever “since as a child”. He was prepared from is childhood for life to be cruel and this seems like an unusual trait or line of reasoning for a child to posses, indicating a deep-rooted pessimism. This pessimism is not external as life around him has “kept faith with him” and “proved to be much as you said you were”. Unlike in Baxter’s case Hardy has had no nasty surprises and torment because he has been prepared for it all along. He hasn’t been caught of guard and thus he regrets and resents nothing. He is almost at peace with his situation because life hasn’t promised “overmuch” to him and therefore cannot leave him pinning for more.

The sustained pessimistic view Hardy has had on life can be seen in the word “neutral-tinted haps”. He doesn’t think much of all the occurrences in his life they have come and gone as bland and “neutral” as he had always expected the to be. The use of “tinted” helps to create an image of faded sunglasses or fading stained glass windows in a church, thus it is a powerful description, which effectively portrays his constant pessimistic view on life as an external occurrence he was always prepared for.

Hardy accepts the one immutable truth that at the end of the day even after all you have achieved and done and suffered through you will end up dead anyway, “ while some have shown contempt of me / till they dropped underground”. Here Hardy explores how there are highs and lows in life and how meaningless they really are. He shows us how the triumphs and losses of life have a vital pyrrhic quality. How at the end of the day, at the end of your life the triumphs and failures are meaningless when faced with the ultimate end where a man and even his memory must die.

Hardy enters a deeper exploration of the calm realization he has had concerning the tragedy of life by emulating his thoughts and feelings in the line; “Many with smooth serenity” Here Hardy mirrors the feeling and texture of his thoughts and ruminations on the subject of the misery of life. He demonstrates how one can be aware of a truth that could destroy an individual yet remain calm and collected. How an epiphany of this magnitude does not entail the destruction of an individual but rather a calm contribution to that individual’s character and perceptions.

In conclusion, Baxter’s internal pessimism which stems from the loss of his roots and his lack of readiness for the suffering life had in store for him, seems to be much more severe in its effects than Hardy’s external pessimism. Hardy was prepared for all the hardship life could throw at him, thus he could be at peace with his pessimism as something inevitable that life would deal to him in any situation or set of circumstance.