The Man He Killed

Although Hardy experimented with complicated formal structures during his nearly two-decades-long work in poetry—typographical effects, irregular line lengths, variations in stanza lengths (reflecting his early passion for architecture), and the use of shifting point-of-view refrains—the formal structure of “The Man He Killed” reflects Hardy’s interest in capturing the psychology and personality of a common working-class infantry soldier.

Formal experiments typically call attention to the poet. Here, however, the form is direct and clear: five quatrains (four-line stanzas) with a regular rhyme scheme: ABAB. The form never calls attention to itself and thus creates the tone and feel of a foot soldier. Elaborate or subtle designs with intricate and subtle iterations would detract—it is as if the reader is sitting and listening to this soldier. The integrity of that simple form reflects Hardy’s desire to create sympathy with a common soldier struggling to understand exactly what combat has done to him.

“The Man He Killed” tells a story in that the poet stands apart like a dramatist and allows the character to create himself through an unfolding monologue that provides the reader with the typical narrative elements:

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