Death can hit people in so many different ways. Some people just cry, others simply don’t know what to do. It may hit some people instantly; it may take others a few weeks or months before the fact of death hits them. Every person handles death in different ways. Poems are a way that allows people to express their feelings about the loss of a loved one. The first poem I read is called XX. The wife of a soldier who was killed during a battle has written the poem about her feelings during her loved ones funeral.
XX
by W.H. Auden
Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone,
Prevent the dog from barking with a juicy bone,
Silence the pianos and with muffled drum
Bring out the coffin, let the mourners come.
Let aeroplanes circle moaning overhead
Scribbling on the sky the message He Is Dead,
Put crepe bows round the white necks of the public doves,
Let the traffic policemen wear black cotton gloves.
He was my North, my South, my East and West,
My working week and my Sunday rest,
My noon, my midnight, my talk, my song;
I thought that love would last for ever: I was wrong.
The stars are not wanted now; put out every one:
Pack up the moon and dismantle the sun;
Pour away the ocean and sweep up the woods:
For nothing now can ever come to any good.
W.H Auden express the idea that the army can do whatever they want to show their respect towards the soldier and his family, but to Auden, “nothing now could ever come to any good”.
In the first stanza she is describing the things that went on after the death of her husband. The words she uses to describe these actions, gives me the ability to actually imagine the noises suddenly stopping. I can see a vivid picture in my head of what she is describing.
In the second stanza she is again describing what was happening after his death. She sees the airplanes in the sky and sees the airplane as though it was stating that, he is dead. The bows on the doves and the policemen wearing black gloves are usually a sign of respect giving to the dead soldier and his family, but Auden sees them as a sign of his death being a reality. Death is such a hard concept to grasp and when she saw these things happening, she realized that it was true and he was gone forever. In the poem the tone she uses is as though she doesn’t care anymore. By using the word let, she is saying, let them do what they want, she simply doesn’t care. She goes on to prove the fact that she no longer cares about anything. She says that he was everything to her and now that he is gone, the stars and the moon could be taken away, the ocean and the woods could be taken away. Although she only states four things, those four things are representing everything in her life. She believes as long as she no longer has her love, nothing is any good any more.
On a Distant Star, by Rosaline T. Patterson, is another poem I read. It too is about the loss of a loved one in a war. She has a similar perspective as WH Audin by using poetry to describe her grief, but her poem gives off a completely different feeling about how she will remember her loved one.
On a Distant Star
© By Rosaline T. Patterson
Wasn't expecting that sudden good-bye,
Every time I think 'bout it,
I just wanna break down and cry...
Watching it all in disbelief,
I called your cell phone,
Hoping for some instant relief.
Didn't know then it was all in vain,
Could only smell the choking smoke,
Praying that you weren't in pain...
Hating the day...despising the way,
I was stripped of our future,
And now I am here to say...
Knowing you was the best thing about us.
Having you was the truest treasure,
My heart could ever try to measure...
And I believe, wherever you are...
There is a New York City angel,
Living, living on a distant star.
For Patterson, death is also a hard concept to grasp. In her poem she says she calls his cell phone, hoping for an answer on the other side. This shows that she is having a hard time convincing herself that he is gone and there is no way to bring him back. After the phone call she seems to understand the idea of his death and prays. She prays that he felt no pain when he died. When she prays, it brings back the visions from the day she found out about his death. Similarly to Auden, Patterson is upset that her future was taken away. She felt as though her future was meant to be with this man and it would no longer be the same, just as Auden felt as though the stars, moon, oceans, and woods no longer meant anything to her because of the loss of her loved one. The big difference between these two authors is how they thought of their loved ones now that they were gone. Auden stated that her love was gone, she thought that it would have lasted for ever but she said she was wrong. Patterson seemed to be saying that her love would always be there for him. She knew he was the best thing for her and she felt that he was out there somewhere, living on a distant star. That seems she is saying that, because he will always be out there as a New York City angel, she will always remember and him and love him forever.
Both poems describe the grief and pain these authors went through during the loss of their loved ones, but they both have completely different feelings about the death after it was realized. Auden felt as though her love was gone, and nothing seemed to matter any longer. Patterson was always going to remember the love she had and still has for him.
Death in general is a hard feeling to come to terms with. Death in war is a specific grievance that many people are going through together. Although many people are losing their loved ones to war not a single person has the same feelings. Some people will feel hatred. Some will feel as though they have lost a part of them. Others will try to erase the idea of their love out of their memory because it causes so much pain. These two poems give two similar feelings about the loss of a loved one to war, but also two completely different feelings about how they decided to deal with the grief.
