1. Thomas Gray

2. His Life
Gray was born in London and was the only of 11 children to live to adulthood
Thomas lived with his mother away from his abusive father
Thomas attended college and was close friends with young men who inspired his intellectual growth, including taking him on a Grand Tour of Europe
As he grew older, Gray still enjoyed traveling and often visited areas of England, particularly the Lake District

3. Gray was studious, but shy, often considered to be one of the most intelligent men of his time
He was rarely pleased with his poetry and refused the position of Poet Laureate in 1757
He was made Professor of History at Cambridge in 1768
Gray died in 1771 and is buried beside his mother
He is honored with a monument in Westminster Abbey

4. His Work
Gray is considered a transitional poet; his work moves poetry from the neoclassical forms seen in the Restoration to the full-fledged Romantic poetry defined by Wordsworth and Coleridge
He is best known for “Elegy in a Country Churchyard”
Highly respected by his friends as a poet, this poem was one of a very few he allowed published in his lifetime

5. Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard
Reflects the evolving Romantic view of an idealized, innocent life of rural people living an unspoiled life away from the negatives of the city
This poem uses a neoclassic formality to present a Romantic theme
An elegy is a memorialization of the death of someone, and this poem meditates on death and grief