Thomas Gray had a difficult childhood. As a young man he suffered terrible heartbreak. For this reason, Gray turned to writing to ease the pain. Death and its problems were the main theme of most of his poems. As a writer, Thomas Gray inspired others to think about their emotions and death with his poem "Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard." Thomas Gray's poetry was called pre-romantic poetry and focused on nature and the lives of ordinary people. .1 The topics of death, suicide and physical decay have always been on people's minds. In Gray's time, sadness was a popular theme2. People faced hardships such as war and disease. Thomas Gray captured people's emotions perfectly with his poems. When he was younger, Thomas Gray lived with his mother and aunt in the village of Stoke Poges. It was at Stoke Poges that he decided to write poetry.3 He took long walks through the fields and other places. He would remember everything he saw.4 The church and the cemetery were two places that stood out to him.5 This inspired him to write the poem “Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard.” Thomas Gray was also inspired by nature. He knew that nature could help someone cope with pain. Nature can soothe and repair any sadness we experience. The landscape and the beauty of nature helped him write the poem6. There was something calming and comforting about nature that helped Gray. However, he also felt anguish and burden in his life.7 He felt tragedy as he walked through the cemetery.8 Although Gray was inspired by his surroundings and nature, death had an influence major on “Elegy written in a country cemetery”. There were two major deaths in his life that affected his poetry. One of the deaths was his aunt. His aunt...... middle of paper ...... Etic strain: The Great Lyric in the 18th century. Chicago: Chicago, 1984. 10823. Ketton-Cremer, R. W. 13924. Gray, Thomas. “Elegy written in a country cemetery.” 57625. Gray, Thomas. “Elegy written in a country cemetery.” 57926. Gray, Thomas. “Elegy written in a country cemetery.” 57927. Gray, Thomas. Elegy written in a country cemetery. xiv28. Starr, Hebert W. 3329. Starr, Hebert W. 3330. Gray, Thomas. “Elegy written in a country cemetery.” 57631. Gray, Thomas. “Elegy written in a country cemetery.” 57632. Gray, Thomas. “Elegy written in a country cemetery.” 57933. Ketton-Cremer, RW 13934. Golden, Morris. 70-7235. Starr, Hebert W. 8536. Golden, Morris. 7037. Golden, Morris. 7338. Ellis, The Elegy of Frank H. Gray: The Biographical Problem in Literary Criticism. Flight. 66. PMLA, 1951. 97139. Ketton-Cremer, R.W.. 139