| After finishing his last novel Jude the Obscure, from 1903 to 1908 Hardy labored, with only few interruptions, on The Dynasts, which includes three Parts, nineteen Acts, and one hundred and thirty Scenes. This huge work covers a period of ten years from Napoleon's abortive attempt to invade England in 1805 to his Waterloo defeat in 1815. It is estranged to ordinary readers for its eccentric epic-drama form and the absurd language but the thought reflected in it is not strange, which fully embodies Hardy's mind.It can be said that The Dynasts is the expression, made at the last stage of his life, of Hardy's attitude toward Man, Nature, War, History, God and Universe, which sometimes are irrelevant and independent separately. But sometimes they are bound to each other, seemly under the control of a supernatural force. That is the Immanent Will, which is the core of Hardy's philosophy. Many critics remark that it is influenced by Schopenhauer and Hartmann, that is for sure; but Hardy takes it as his"own idea."Meanwhile with the effect of modern science initiated by Darwin's The Origin of the Species Hardy takes The Dynasts as the groundwork, orienting Napoleon to deliver his ideas to the universe in the words of the Spirits.Although Hardy himself is not a philosopher, The Dynasts actually reflects many philosophic questions. This paper aims to read the epic-drama from the philosophic perspective and explore Hardy's attitude to the whole universe: war is irrational and solves nothing; the whole universe is just as one controlled by the Immanent Will; human individuals are the puppets of it; no one can change the history; it is determined and lamentable, but it is also hopeful for it can be awakening. Hardy leaves the hope at the end of the work, and hopes it will be better, which is the illustration of his evolutionary mileriosm. Therefore his pessimism is not absolute and still has hope.In Chapter II, besides the elaboration of the Immanent Will, this paper also explores the deity device—the supernaturalism in The Dynasts by taking the Spirits as an example; and tries to find out the relationship between his determinism and the Immanent Will, which is regarded as Hardy's philosophy.In Chapter III, instead of focusing on one human being, the paper takes all humans as a whole to find out how the Immanent Will manipulates the human life and all types of human activities, and presents the reflection of Hardy's attitude toward War and Universe.Hardy is not a philosopher. The Dynasts is his cry in the late period of his life time. The theme of The Dynasts is no of essential difference from his early lyrics and novels. But it is a modern epic to gather his philosophic thoughts in one piece of work: Universe still has hope, though people's life is full of suffering."It is not the pessimistic sighing but an appealing to love, from a philanthropist."...
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