Finding Life in Death
“Thanatopsis” is a romantic poem written by William Cullen Bryant during the rise of transcendentalist thinking. The poem gives a pantheistic and philosophical view of nature, God, and death. “Thanatopsis” was a revolutionary work for its time because it focuses on finding solace in death. Bryant’s writing challenged the normal concept of literature by building off of and borrowing old ideas. Before transcendentalist ideas became popular, writers’ work was centered on God and the physical world. Bryant and other transcendentalist writers challenged this ordinary way of thinking by questioning reality, finding comfort in nature, and concentrating on improving their inner beings. Bryant vividly describes the beauty and
…show more content…
grace in nature with the use of personification. He wants the reader to welcome death with open arms instead of fearing or fighting it. The personification of nature is used to ease one’s mind about the inevitability of death and the afterlife. “Thanatopsis” is narrated by nature who is personifying itself in order to help the reader cope with death and accept it as an unavoidable way of life that should not be feared. The element of personification causes nature to become more relatable, familiar, and soothing to the reader. When the poem says “She has a voice of gladness, and a smile/ And eloquence of beauty” (Rio-Jelliffe), nature assumes the appearance of a beautiful woman. Naturally, we associate beautiful women with being trustworthy and full of grace and elegance. Bryant is trying to convince the reader to welcome death as an inviting force. The poem conveys that, “Natural beauty, magnified in detail after concrete detail, is a metaphor of nature's all-encompassing beneficence” (Rio-Jelliffe). A large majority of the poem is Bryant using imagery to describe the beauty and consolation of nature. He wants to express how inspiring and comforting the Earth can be during times of grief. Bryant was a strong advocate for introspective and meditative thinking. He inventively arranged “Thanatopsis” to be relatable and soothing. Bryant refers to nature having a joyful and healing voice. Some believe that, “Nature's projected images and man's emotional needs seem to harmonize perfectly; the man-nature empathy appears seamless and complete” (Budick). This explanation implies that the reason nature comes across as being so familiar is because some men crave a woman’s affection and gentleness. They would be more open to receiving Bryant’s message if it was delivered in a manner that made them feel more comfortable and welcomed. Bryant uses the beauty and tranquility of nature to appeal to the needs of man in a way that Puritan literature had not done before. Bryant’s work steered away from traditional Puritan and Christian forms of literature. In the early 1800s, “American criticism was preoccupied with the social implications of literature and questions of art and technique were too often neglected” (Rio-Jelliffe). Most Puritan writers were concerned with how people would remember them as a person and how much of an impact their message made years later. Because of this, many writers wrote to sound heroic or to emphasize a life lesson. Complex and artistically structured works were hard to come by. It is understood that, “Puritan training traced this mortality to an original apostasy of the race from God, and to the penalty of a broken law. The thoughts of youth are long, long thoughts, and Bryant never outgrew the somberness of this early view of the universe” (Strong). Bryant was raised on Christian faith and this altered how he saw the world for the rest of his life. As he grew more mature, Bryant began to look at the world in a more spiritual and optimistic way and that is reflected in “Thanatopsis”. Bryant was a believer of God, but he also believed in science and reason. Bryant “…saw God in the beauty and grandeur of the world. Woods, waves, and sky were vocal with praise of their great Author. Bryant was not ignorant of science, but he wished to join science to faith” (Strong). He combines the power of God and the voice he has given to nature in “Thanatopsis” in a way that make death appear to be serene. But only using a calm and lighthearted tone will not cause a poem to be as impactful as it could be, so Bryant had to bring out a slightly more subdued tone to truly get his point to reverberate in the minds of his readers. “Thanatopsis” compares many elements of nature to death, loss, and grief.
As “Thanatopsis progresses, the tone of nature becomes darker and more death oriented, but it still conveys a component of consolation to them. When it is said that, “Bryant had written that, although in death one may lose his "individual being . . . to mix forever with the elements, / To be a brother to the insensible rock," nature taught that one may learn to approach death with trust by living life” (Kagle 152). In this passage, Bryant is saying that once we die, our physical bodies will return to nature forever. He says that a person should prepare for death by living a meaningful life and trusting in nature. To make nature come across as a powerful force, Rio-Jelliffe states that, “Enhancing nature's grandeur heightens the attractiveness of man's final resting place, but contrarily, intensifies rather than mitigates feelings of sorrow and loss which, from the start, imbues natural objects in the body of the poem” (Rio-Jelliffe). A possible reason as to why Bryant chose a more somber tone in parts of “Thanatopsis” is for the effect of making nature appear more powerful. People both fear and respect power. The fearing of God is a prevalent part of most Puritan literature. This fear caused people to obey and trust God’s word in order to save their souls from damnation after they had died. Similarly, Bryant wants to get the reader to trust the power and grace of nature so that death will be …show more content…
regarded as a welcoming conclusion to life. There is emphasis throughout the poem placed on returning back to the earth upon death. Bryant refers to nature having a still voice which, again, implies peace and serenity. The word ‘still’ could have two possible interpretations, “the still voice speaks of death, the ultimate stilling of the natural world, but it also vocalizes nature's perpetual continuity … Death concludes life, stills it; but death also extends life's meaning, draws it into sustained involvement with the endless cycles of the natural world” (Budick). When one thinks of something being still, generally they associate it with being motionless or dead. In the case of “Thanatopsis,” this word can also mean continuity. When a person dies, their body becomes one with the earth and becomes a part of nature’s never ending cycle. The opinions of Bryant can be compared to those of Walt Whitman, another transcendentalist writer who was fascinated by the concept of death. Whitman wrote that “the smallest sprout shows that there is no death, / and if ever there was it led forward to life” (Kagle 152). Bryant and Whitman both believed that death was not the end of life, but that it was the rebirth of life. They believed that the components of the mind and the body should be seen as everlasting instead of finite. In conclusion, by giving nature a trusting and comforting voice in “Thanatopsis,” Bryant hopes that the reader will think of death as an inevitable factor of life that should not be dreaded.
He encourages the reader to live life to its maximum potential in preparation of death. The writing of William Cullen Bryant went against customary styles of writing and attempted to change the way that death was portrayed to people. Through the use of personification, strong imagery, and contemplative thinking, Bryant combines the beauty of nature with the strength of God in a way that paints death as a lively picture rather than a melancholy one. Bryant inspires the reader to live an impactful life and to accept the coming of death with a sense of renewal and
peace.
Chuck Palahniuk once said, “The first step to eternal life, is you have to die.” In William Cullen Bryant’s poem “Thanatopsis”, he does not mention eternal life or anything religious, but speaks about death. He tells his readers that death is a natural thing and they should not worry about it. William Cullen Bryant, in his poem “Thanatopsis”, portrays a comforting view of death. Throughout the poem, Bryant encourages his readers by explaining that in death they are not alone, that death, like life, is a natural process, and that they will be among some of the finest people who walked the earth.
When people ponder death they wonder about the unknown with trepidation. As a young man, William Cullen Bryant wrote the "Thanatopsis." His thoughts progress from the fear of death to the acceptance of the event. People should not fear death because everyone dies and becomes a part of nature.
In this essay, I will compare the philosophies of transcendentalism and anti-transcendentalism through the writings of Thoreau and Emerson vs. Melville. In Thoreau’s excerpt of “Walden”, he tested the transcendentalist philosophy through experience. Emerson’s transcendental writing style is displayed in “Nature”. In Melville’s excerpt of Moby Dick, he exhibits anti-transcendentalism in his work.
“The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost is the best representation of transcendentalism because it shows self-reliance, conformity versus nonconformity, and the importance of nature. In the poem, the speaker makes a choice to continue their walk through the forest on the path that is barely disturbed. The speaker’s choice showed the reader that the speaker had free will and trust in their decision, which plays into the theme of self-reliance in transcendentalism. The poem also touches on the definitions of conformity and nonconformity when the speaker described the path of nonconformity as if, “no step had trodden black.” The author did not describe the path of conformity in the poem in detail, but the lack of description perfectly tied into the
Transcendentalism is based on the belief that institutions in the society corrupt an individual’s purity. Transcendentalists believe that people are at their best when they are truly independent and self-reliant. They also believe that from independence and self-reliance, a true community is formed. Even though Transcendentalism is not recognized, it still exists in the modern society. Though not clearly outspoken as in Emerson and Thoreau’s times, many people in today’s society still have transcendental beliefs. Transcendental ideals are found in songs, films, books and other works such as media and advertisements. One example is the song “Get up, Stand up,” by Bob Marley, it is found to be influenced and has inspiration of transcendental elements such as Solitude (individuality), self-reliance, non-conformism (anti-institution), anti-materialism, nature and spirituality.
First, tone is a very important aspect of the poem “Thanatopsis.” While reading the poem, the reader may feel a slight change in the tone of the poem. At first the poem seems as though it were about nature and its beauty. For example, in the poem Bryant writes “She has a voice of gladness, and a smile/And eloquence of beauty, and she glides.”(4-5) Here, the tone is happy and elegant. Also, the reader is under the impression that nature is a safe and beautiful place. However, as the reader continues on, one may notice a sudden shift in tone. Bryant writes, “Into his darker musings, with a mild/And gentle sympathy, that steals away/ Their sharpness, ere he is aware.”(6-8) Here, the tone shifts to dark and gloomy. Throughout the poem Bryant uses numerous words or phrases that relate to death. One very noticeable instance of this is in lines nine and 11. Bryant uses the words such as shroud, pall, and narrow house. Shroud and pall are both word related to coffins. A shroud is a cloth used to wrap a body before burial. A pall is the cover to a coffin. This depicts the sinist...
William Cullen Bryant wrote a poem regarding the passing of people from this world into the afterlife which he called “Thanatopsis”. The word Thanatopsis is actually a Greek word meaning ‘meditation on or contemplation of death’. It is the opinion of some readers that this poem expresses a traditional religious view of afterlife in heaven where as others who read it see it as a process that only involves our rejoining with nature. Bryant made references to heaven, nature and spirits which contribute to the discussion on both sides of the argument. Poetry, just like every other form of art, is subject to interpretation. After taking a closer look at Thanatopsis it will be easier to see just why these people cannot seem to agree. Bryant made
Before I started cheering, both of my parents never knew how much goes into being a cheerleader. Though soccer was the sport I grew up playing, I ended up quitting to try out for cheerleading in seventh grade. I made the squad that year and I immediately became attached to cheerleading, though my parents did not know how to react exactly. Of course they were happy for me since it was something that I wanted to do, but it was not soccer. My dad did not consider cheerleading to be a sport in the beginning, claiming that “there is no team quality to cheering.” It was safe to say that he did not necessarily like that I quit soccer to take up cheering since he did not consider cheerleading to be a real sport. I have learned that going against tradition and conformity is difficult, but is worth it in the end.
Modern day transcendentalists are not easily found anymore in society. It is hard to pinpoint exactly what a transcendentalist is. By being your own self, following your own standards and being yourself, you become transcendental. By looking at the Robertsons’ way of life, they would make a tremendous example of modern day transcendentalists. Their religion, love of nature, and individualism create a transcendental lifestyle.
Many people have theories and philosophies about life in general. There have been hundreds of thousands of books published by many different people on the ideas of people in the past and the present. Transcendentalism falls in amongst all of these ideas. There have been articles, essays, poems, and even books written about this subject. Transcendentalism has effected many people since the philosophy was first introduced. The idea was complex and hard to grasp for many commoners and therefore it was understood by few people, and some would think that the idea was not understood at all and that was part of the idea. Henry David Thoreau once stated about himself, “I should have told them at once that I was a transcendentalist. That would have been the shortest way of telling them that they would not understand my explanations” (Reuben 1).
Mankind has lost its place at the center of God’s universe. Now, when you watch the
In “Thanatopsis” written by William Cullen Bryant and “Poems #479 because I could not stop for Death” written by Emily Dickinson they both show an extremely solid theme in their poems. Both poems revolved around death. William Cullen Bryant wrote “Thanatopsis” in 1811. Even though the themes in “Thanatopsis” is center entirely on death. The mood in the story is slightly joyful and uplifting in numerous ways. Emily Dickinson wrote “Poems #479” in 1890. The people in William Cullen Bryant and Emily Dickinson live had a huge impact on their career in poetry.
In Emily Dickinson’s “Because I Could Not Stop for Death,” she uses the structure of her poem and rhetoric as concrete representation of her abstract beliefs about death to comfort and encourage readers into accepting Death when He comes. The underlying theme that can be extracted from this poem is that death is just a new beginning. Dickinson deftly reassures her readers of this with innovative organization and management, life-like rhyme and rhythm, subtle but meaningful use of symbolism, and ironic metaphors. Dickinson organizes the lines into quatrains—stanzas containing four lines—which are frequently used in religious hymns.
way we think, act, dress and speak? Thoreau and Emerson both tried to incorporate this
Throughout history, nature often served as an escape, as well as a point of intrigue, from reality to focus on what truly mattered in life. For the transcendentalists, the importance of nature itself was central to their movement. Furthermore, nonconformity, self reliance, free thought, confidence, and the importance of nature were also central to transcendentalists goals and desires. With the changing appearence of America due to the Industrial Revolution, transcendentalists, such as Ralph Waldo Emerson, encouraged people to turn back to nature, despite America increasingly turning away from it. Furthermore, instead of simply talking about the importance of nature and appreciating its beauty, some transcendentalists (such as Henry David Thoreau)