 In choosing an " English " over a Classical setting , Gray provided a model for later poets wishing to describe England and the English countryside during the second half of the 18th century . Once Gray had set the example , any occasion would do to give a sense of the effects of time in a landscape , as for instance in the passage of the seasons as described in John Scott ’ s Four Elegies , descriptive and moral ( 1757 ) . Other imitations , though avoiding overt verbal parallels , chose similar backgrounds to signal their parentage . One favourite theme was a meditation among ruins , such as John Langhorne 's “ Written among the ruins of Pontefract Castle ” ( 1756 ) , Edward Moore ’ s “ An elegy , written among the ruins of a nobleman 's seat in Cornwall ” ( 1756 ) and John Cunningham ’ s “ An elegy on a pile of ruins " ( 1761 ) . Gray ’ s friend William Mason chose an actual churchyard in South Wales for his “ Elegy VI ” ( 1787 ) , adding a reference to the poet in the text . He also provided a final note explaining that the poem was written “ to make it appear a day scene , and as such to contrast it with the twilight scene of my excellent Friend ’ s Elegy ” . 
