Death In Thanatopsis, The Tide Rises, The Tide Falls

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Recommended: Essays on death in poems

“Thanatopsis” provides an very insightful view in what death means to different people. When death is concerned, it is important to take into account the age of the speaker, since it reflects on their proximity to death. Of course, this is not 100% accurate since many people die in their youth due to different causes, but it is nonetheless relevant, since the older you are, the closer you are to your inevitable demise. In “Thanatopsis” the author tells the reader that it is natural to think about death, since it is everywhere, and the world basically revolves around the idea of death, however people shouldn’t be afraid of it, and should instead live a full life, so by the time comes to die, you can die comfortably, for you have lived a plentiful life. It is an optimistic poem that invites the reader to live the best life they possibly can. …show more content…

In this poem instead of telling the reader to live plentiful, it instead serves to remind the reader that life isn’t eternal, however time is. When we are gone we are eventually forgotten, and if whatever we did during our life was worth it, is debatable. This is my interpretation of the footprint metaphor used in the poem, which is erased by the waves, forgotten from history.
I don’t view this poem as explicitly pessimistic, but it is depressing. It arises questions such as “Is my life worth anything?” or “Does anything I do matter?”. The complete opposite of “Thanatopsis” which tells us we can work hard to be remembered for our work, or that death is great since we share with all the great people which have existed in

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