Thanatopsis

Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 1817

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Summary

Background

Poem Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Literary Devices

Themes

Mortality and Fate

The poem explores what it means to be mortal and thus fated to die, urging readers to dwell on their future absence from the world: One day, “thee / The all-beholding sun shall see no more” (Lines 18-19). The poem dwells on the physical nature of death, chronicling the loss of “each human trace” and “Thine individual being” as your interred body becomes one “with the elements, / To be brother to the insensible rock” (Lines 25-28). These lines paint a vivid image of future lifelessness—bodies after death are so inanimate that they might as well be stones in the ground. Being mortal means eventually losing one’s coherence as an individual and distinguishable being—death will break bodies down into their constituent “elements” instead.

The poem portrays this reality as an inescapable fate. Playing on the Puritan concept of predestination—the belief that souls have a pre-determined afterlife destination at birth—the poem instead posits that only death is predestined for everyone. For instance, it states, “All that breathe / Will share thy destiny” (Lines 61-62). However, for the speaker, rather than evoking the terror of errant behavior that Puritan predestination was meant to elicit, the knowledge that all are fated to die is comforting. He finds awe-inspiring beauty in the idea that all who currently live “are but a handful to the tribes” who have lived and died on the earth (Line 50). The speaker describes universally fated death as a liberating, equalizing force that wipes out human distinctions and the categorizations of Puritan pre-destination: “Thou shalt lie down / With patriarchs […] with kings, / The powerful of the earth” (Lines 34-36). Mortals who could never have been part of the same echelon in life will join each other “in one mighty sepulchre” (Line 38). This ultimate and inescapable destiny should not be something to fear—the poem stresses its benign and even welcome coming.

Solace in the Face of Death

Another theme present in “Thanatopsis” is the attempt to convey solace when facing the reality of death. Despite the poem’s take on mortality and the earth as the “eternal resting-place” of all humans (Line 32), an underlying message rests in the idea that viewing mortality in the way presented by the poem will dispel distress about death, causing one to no longer fear it.

The poem states that you will not go this this resting place alone, “nor couldst thou wish / Couch more magnificent” (Lines 33-34). Rather, you will lie down with “patriarchs,” “kings,” and “The powerful of the earth—the wise, the good” (Lines 35-36). All will be united in the “mighty sepulchre” that is the earth (Line 38). Death thus unites us all in a shared destination, providing a sense of collectiveness and solidarity when confronted with death. The poem attempts to comfort the reader with the notion that all face the same fate.

Based on the poem’s take on mortality—that our bodies will “be resolved to earth again” (Line 24)—it then encourages the reader to live their life in such a way that when death comes to meet them, they will go “sustained and soothed / By an unfaltering trust” (Lines 79-80). If one approaches the grave while keeping in mind the solidarity of their shared fate, they will be “Like one who wraps the drapery” of their couch around them “and lies down to pleasant dreams” (Lines 81-82). In adopting the poem’s perspective on the nature of death described throughout the text, the poem tries to relay a sense of solace so that you will not be afraid of death and will meet it with peace and trust when it comes.

Nature as a Teacher

One prominent message in “Thanatopsis” is that nature is a repository of and a resource for much wisdom, especially regarding death, and that nature plays a significant role in death.

The poem opens with a personifying celebration of nature for its ability to actively intervene in human emotions: In times of happiness, it mirrors our mood with “gladness, and a smile” (Line 4), and in sadder times, we can look to it for comfort. This version of nature as a giving and undemanding nurturer, combined with the poem’s use of the feminine pronoun “she” to refer to it, makes nature into a maternal force.

Nature is also characterized as a profound teacher, particularly on the topic of death. However, unlike its effects on mood, nature does not volunteer its wisdom; rather, only those who know how to read into nature and use their observations to enlighten themselves can learn what it has to teach. The poem’s speaker urges readers to “list / To Nature’s teachings” (Lines 14-15) when thoughts of death cause one to become gloomy.

Listening to nature in this way will offer comfort. Its nurturing side will instruct you in the physical realities of death: That after the body loses sentience, the earth that was a maternal force during life will reclaim you “to be resolved to earth again” (Line 24). Your flesh will surrender itself to the earth “To mix for ever with the elements” (Line 27)—in other words, death will break the complex organism down into its more basic parts, merging those with the rest of the natural world and ostensibly even reusing them to create new living things. However, because this dissolution happens to every single person who has died or will die, the poem stresses that the process of death is nothing to fear—it is natural and thus benign.

The inanimate aspects of nature—woods, rivers, meadows, and oceans—are also all oriented around human deaths. Their main function is to be “the solemn decorations” of the “great tomb” of humankind (Lines 45-46). Even heavenly bodies shine down upon the “abodes of death” (Line 48), illuminating human burial sites even when they humans they celebrate can no longer perceive them.