Victory over Death in Wordsworth¡¯S ¡°Intimations of Immortality Ode¡±

Death is the most inevitable and unknown aspect of life. It is unescapable, and by most of today’s population, it is feared in the utmost regard. Our materialistic views and constant desertion of religious ideals has forced our society to view death as an ultimate end. Socrates and St. Augustine’s views on death differ from many views on the subject in 2017, however, for their time, these men had the power to influence a plethora of individuals with their theories. For Socrates, death should never be feared and should be considered a blessing if our souls were to ascend to heaven, or death could be an extensive slumber without any dreaming whatsoever. With

Death is a topic that unites all of humanity. While it can be uncomfortable to think about, confronting death in unavoidable. “Dying” addresses that discomfort and universal unwillingness to consider the inevitability of death. Pinsky’s use of imagery, symbolism, and tone create a poetic experience that is like death, something every reader can relate to. In “Dying,” Pinsky describes how people are oblivious and almost uncaring when it comes to the thought of death. Pinsky is trying to convince the reader that they shouldn’t ignore the concept of death because life is shorter than it seems.

Death is a controversial and sensitive subject. When discussing death, several questions come to mind about what happens in our afterlife, such as: where do you go and what do you see? Emily Dickinson is a poet who explores her curiosity of death and the afterlife through her creative writing ability. She displays different views on death by writing two contrasting poems: one of a softer side and another of a more ridged and scary side. When looking at dissimilar observations of death it can be seen how private and special it is; it is also understood that death is inevitable so coping with it can be taken in different ways. Emily Dickinson’s poems “Because I Could Not Stop for Death” and “I Heard A Fly Buzz When I Died” show both

Mary Oliver’s poem, “Sleeping in the Forest,” presents a peaceful and vivid representation of death and its relationship with nature. As the poem begins, the reader is introduced to the earth welcoming the speaker back into the realm of nature. Man was created from the dust of the earth and when we die, our bodies return to the dust. However, this poem presents a more beautiful image of what death is composed of. Death is often portrayed as being frightening and disturbing. When individuals are presented with the thought of death, they often push this thought away out of fear and ignorance. Everyone will die someday whether we ignore the thought of death or not. However, Oliver creates a relaxing and welcoming image for the reader on what death (ideally) is. Obviously, since Oliver is still alive, she doesn’t know what death feels like. However, the way she describes death, I hope that it feels like sleeping in a forest; full of stars and enchantment.

How do you view death in the 21st century? Throughout history, the concept of death has taken many forms. Many people consider death as something that is terrifying and horrific, but there are some who view death as a peaceful stepping off point into a blissful eternity. Some prominent poets that have shared their different perspectives regarding death include John Donne, Emily Dickinson, and Randall Jarrell. John Donne was an influential English poet of the 17th century, Emily Dickinson was a distinguished American poet in the 19th century, and Randall Jarrell was a well-known American poet of the 20th century. Although John Donne’s “Death be not Proud,” Emily Dickinson’s “Because I could not stop for Death,” and Randall Jarrell’s “Death of

The deaths of his parents, sister and brother, all taken by tuberculosis, lead to Edgar Allan Poe’s obsession around the subject of death. This obsession enterprises historically ingenious writings, that did not just scare the reading population by inducing a death at the climax or tying in a death to create a gasp worthy ending. Poe’s historic greatness was his ability to use death as a catalyst, not an end. His stories, specifically short stories, strengthened the idea that the end of a life, has so much more meaning, than just the end. This precision was formed by how Poe ingeniously used the knowledge to not only comprise stories involving the subject of death, but used the stories to create deep ideas of the phantom of fatality. The short stories “The Black Cat,” “The Facts in the Case of M.Valdemar,” “The Fall of the House of Usher,” and “The Tell-Tale Heart,” all feature the inventive writing skills of Poe, that have enthralled populations since their publications.

Emily Dickinson is one of the most important American poets of the 1800s. Dickinson, who was known to be quite the recluse, lived and died in the town of Amherst, Massachusetts, spending the majority of her days alone in her room writing poetry. What few friends she did have would testify that Dickinson was a rather introverted and melancholy person, which shows in a number of her poems where regular themes include death and mortality. One such poem that exemplifies her “dark side” is, “Because I Could Not Stop for Death”. In this piece, Dickinson tells the story of a soul’s transition into the afterlife showing that time and death have outright power over our lives and can make what was once significant become meaningless.

Around the world, people of all cultures, religions, and so on, each acquired their own beliefs on unique aspects of spirituality, and the life of a human and what happens after life on the planet. Though most people believe in a universal definition of life as being joyful, fruitful, and a positive subject, death, on the other hand, has numerous definitions between each person. Some people consider death to be morbid, horrifying, and a negative thing, whereas others celebrate death and believe that their soul will live forever. Each of the countless observations of life and death are portrayed in diverse types of literature. One contributor and writer of such literature includes Emily Dickinson. In her poems “Because I Could Not Stop for

Regardless of race, caste, religion, or age, every human has wondered about the one fact of life that unifies us all: What is death? Both poems, “Death of a Young Son by Drowning” by Margaret Atwood and “Because I could Not Stop for Death” by Emily Dickinson share a common subject of death. Using figurative language, both poems illustrate distinct takes on a similar topic.

Dying is said to be peaceful, a way to infinite happiness. This serene state, however, is only felt by the person dying. For most others, family members, close friends, coworkers, etc., death is a dark mystery. This mystery of death was intensified when the famous author, Edgar Allan Poe, died in 1849. For hundreds of years, Poe enthusiasts and hungry detectives have searched for a reason that can explain why Poe died after being found barely conscious outside a tavern in Baltimore.

Death is an inescapable doom that marks the end of one’s life and can be used as a threat to scare others to manipulate them. Moreover, some deaths can be more significant than others. In literature, death will oftentimes mark a turning point or symbolify a key concept in the novel. Both the novels, Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley, and, 1894, by George Orwell, have notable deaths at the ends of their books. Brave New World has the death of John the savage, while 1984 has the death of Winston Smith.

Death is an Illusion, when a person comes to its demise, it does not disappear. Instead, it unifies with the environment around them. Ray Bradbury’s collection of short novels found in the Illustrated Man contain a variety of different ideas and perspectives of life, including his perspective about the ending of humanity and death as a whole. The Last Night of the World and Kaleidoscope illustrates these specific ideas and warn us about our behavior as a race. Quoted by George Orwell “Happiness can exist only in acceptance.”

Death can sometimes be known as “inevitable” because of one’s inability to hide from passing, as most Catholics believe, it is God’s decision. Edgar Allan Poe, an American author, is well known for his poems and short stories relating to mourning or death, some of which include: “The Fall of the House of Usher”, “The Black Cat”, and “The Raven”. These specific pieces of literature tend to focus on the fact that there is no way to escape the consequences of death, return the passed to earth or hide when faced with death. Each and every story Poe has concocted has dealt with the depressing topic of death. Poe continuously utilizes the symbol of death throughout his literature to emphasize the fact that there is no way to dodge the natural process of passing.

Emily Dickinson once said, “Dying is a wild night and a new road.” Some people welcome death with open arms while others cower in fear when confronted in the arms of death. Through the use of ambiguity, metaphors, personification and paradoxes Emily Dickinson still gives readers a sense of vagueness on how she feels about dying. Emily Dickinson inventively expresses the nature of death in the poems, “I felt a Funeral, in my Brain (280)”, “I Heard a fly Buzz—When I Died—(465)“ and “Because I could not stop for Death—(712)”.

William Wordsworth grew up in Cockermouth, England, the second oldest of four. Born in 1770, and no stranger to the classics like Shakespeare, he did not excel nor find his niche at Cambridge University, so he left and went to France. After discovering more of the world and himself, Wordsworth returned to England in 1793, married Annette Vallon, and finally began his life as a poet. Because of the war between France and Britain he was not permitted to go back to France to unite with his wife and son. In William Wordsworth’s poem, “We Are Seven”, he questions a little girl about the death of two of her siblings. According to the author, once a human being dies, nothing is left of them on earth, a concept the little girl cannot seem to grasp. However, it is the author who does not understand the spirituality of life and death.