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William Cullen Bryant. 1794–1878

Born November 3, 1794
Died June 12, 1878

Thomas R. Lounsbury, ed. (1838–1915). Yale Book of American Verse. 1912.

THANATOPSIS

TO HIM who in the love of Nature holds

Communion with her visible forms, she speaks

A various language; for his gayer hours

She has a voice of gladness, and a smile

And eloquence of beauty, and she glides

Into his darker musings, with a mild

And healing sympathy, that steals away

Their sharpness, ere he is aware. When thoughts

Of the last bitter hour come like a blight

Over thy spirit, and sad images

Of the stern agony, and shroud, and pall,

And breathless darkness, and the narrow house,

Make thee to shudder, and grow sick at heart;—

Go forth under the open sky, and list

To Nature's teachings, while from all around—

Earth and her waters, and the depths of air—

Comes a still voice—Yet a few days, and thee

The all-beholding sun shall see no more

In all his course; nor yet in the cold ground,

Where thy pale form was laid, with many tears,

Nor in the embrace of ocean, shall exist

Thy image. Earth, that nourished thee, shall claim

Thy growth, to be resolved to earth again,

And, lost each human trace, surrendering up

Thine individual being, shalt thou go

To mix forever with the elements;

To be a brother to the insensible rock,

And to the sluggish clod, which the rude swain

Turns with his share, and treads upon. The oak

Shall send his roots abroad, and pierce thy mould.

Yet not to thine eternal resting-place

Shalt thou retire alone, nor couldst thou wish

Couch more magnificent. Thou shalt lie down

With patriarchs of the infant world,—with kings,

The powerful of the earth,—the wise, the good,

Fair forms, and hoary seers of ages past,

All in one mighty sepulchre. The hills

Rock-ribbed and ancient as the sun; the vales

Stretching in pensive quietness between;

The venerable woods—rivers that move

In majesty, and the complaining brooks

That make the meadows green; and, poured round all,

Old Ocean's gray and melancholy waste,—

Are but the solemn decorations all

Of the great tomb of man! The golden sun,

The planets, all the infinite host of heaven,

Are shining on the sad abodes of death,

Through the still lapse of ages. All that tread

The globe are but a handful to the tribes

That slumber in its bosom.—Take the wings

Of morning, pierce the Barcan wilderness,

Or lose thyself in the continuous woods

Where rolls the Oregon, and hears no sound,

Save his own dashings,—yet the dead are there:

And millions in those solitudes, since first

The flight of years began, have laid them down

In their last sleep—the dead reign there alone.

So shalt thou rest; and what if thou withdraw

In silence from the living, and no friend

Take note of thy departure? All that breathe

Will share thy destiny. The gay will laugh

When thou art gone, the solemn brood of care

Plod on, and each one as before will chase

His favorite phantom; yet all these shall leave

Their mirth and their employments, and shall come

And make their bed with thee. As the long train

Of ages glide away, the sons of men,

The youth in life's green spring, and he who goes

In the full strength of years, matron and maid,

The speechless babe, and the gray-headed man—

Shall one by one be gathered to thy side

By those, who in their turn shall follow them.

So live, that when thy summons comes to join

The innumerable caravan which moves

To that mysterious realm, where each shall take

His chamber in the silent halls of death,

Thou go not, like the quarry-slave at night,

Scourged to his dungeon, but, sustained and soothed

By an unfaltering trust, approach thy grave

Like one who wraps the drapery of his couch

About him, and lies down to pleasant dreams.

“Thanatopsis” was written by Bryant at the age of 18, and is considered to be a masterpiece of American poetry. “Thanatopsis” is his most famous poem, and has been said to date from 1811, it is much more probable that Bryant began its composition in 1813, or even later. His poetry has been described as being "of a thoughtful, meditative character, and makes but slight appeal to the mass of readers."

This poem had three main points it wished to make, the final one being to most important:

1. Live life fully in order to die well and comfortably.

2. In death, all are joined with Nature and with each other for eternity.

3. This comfort and togetherness in death may only be obtained through death.

The title of William Cullen Bryant’s poem “Thanatopsis” is taken from Greek for “a view of death”. In this poem Bryant personifies nature and discusses death from it’s perspective. The poem begins by talking of the importance and beauty of nature. The original persona used at the beginning of the poem shares with the reader his great appreciation towards nature and the importance to one who appreciates nature to take full advantage of what it offers and learn from it all that they can. The poem continues starting on line 18 by taking on the “still voice” of nature and through her words comforting he whom listens on her honest view of death. Nature sees the world through all time whereas man is limited to a short span of years, therefore nature observes each death as only what it represents on the full scale of time. She has seen that every living thing dies. No man whether he is as important or wise as a king or a simple infant ends up in the same place

Bryant tells one that death is apart of nature and if one wants to learn more about it go outside and let nature teach it. Nature, “speaks a various language; for his gayer hours she has a voice of gladness, and a smile and eloquence of beauty,” (Bryant, lines 3-5). No one understands death more than nature does. No one can explain death better than nature can. Nature gives one a peaceful view of death. It suggests that the “Earth, that nourished thee, shall claim thy growth, to be resolved to earth again, and lost each human trace, surrendering up thine individual being, shalt thou go to mix forever with the elements,” (Bryant lines 22-26). It is suggested that one will become brother to the earth after death. In the beginning one was dust and in the end dust is what one will be.

Bryant comforts the living by letting one know that when one dies one will not be alone. No one will ever have to worry about being alone because, “thou shalt lie down with patriarchs of the infant world-with kings,” (Bryant lines 33-34). It is said that the whole earth is a massive grave. There are centuries of people that lie underneath ones feet. Everyone is going to die. No one is going to escape death it is inevitable. One must accept it because there is nothing one can do to change it. Bryant also believes that everyone can do is live life to the fullest and be happy. Life is going to go on after death.

GROUPS COMMENT

This is one of a beautiful poem. It talks about death and the afterlife which may seems scary to you, but its not a pointless poem. its about accepting your destiny and knowing that you're going to die. Bryant is a writter from the romantic era, so that he loves nature. By saying that we will all go back to nature when we die, he is taking a positive look on death. he says nature has a voice of gladness and a smile of eloquence and beauty. bryant says that death is the earth taking back its children where they will mix with the elements, to be a brother to the insensible rock. During this time, all will be equal and you will be one with all the kings, wise and good. he advices that death is a peaceful thing, so think of it not as a a terriorizing thing and just face the destiny to pleasant dreams

when you look at the death that way, Bryant makes death seems almost like a pleasant thing and a natural event in life. it is merely a step in the cycle of the earth, so death is not just the end of a life, but also a continuous step cycle in the world. Therefore, this poem teaches you about an outlook on life that accepts death and shows you that in order to fully enjoy life, you must accept death.

Taken from:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Cullen_Bryant 01-06-2009 15:31