Thursday, March 8, 2012

Death of a Soldier: A Silent Passing

Many writers have written about death, planned or suddenly, focusing on different aspects. Wallace Stevens examines the fatality and existence of a soldier's death. In the poem Death of a Soldier, Stevens discusses the truth of a soldier's death, reflecting reality instead of the glorification of the sacrifice. Much like the poem 124 by Emily Dickinson, the dead person in the poem is dead and nothing can change that. The soldier was meant to die and thus did. The world did not end, but continued on. The wind blew and the day became night. This idea is seen by the repetition of "As in a season of autumn", which continued to change and become winter even though a person had been killed. Since the man is dead, he no longer cares of his death or the world, again as 124 would claim. Who sentenced the soldier and contracted his death? How will the soldier by remembered? Stevens claims that there will be no memorial, thus death passes without the knowledge of a single person. Does not the poem become a memorial to the soldier though because the audience now reads about the death and the words last long after the last period? In viewing the death of the soldier as expected, but pointless, the author can be seen to criticize war and the reasons for it. Is the gain of power worth the silent passing of soldiers, who are lied to into the failing of life?

2 comments:

  1. Similar to this kind of reality is "War Prayer" by Mark Twain. When the character in the story makes his notions known by discussing the reality of what the people in the church are truly praying for when they pray for victory.
    Also, I'm not sure if soldiers are technically lied to, but certainly swayed. The thing is that we personify glory with actual people and the lives lost for a sake most are unsure of anyhow. Good topic.

    -Stevie Morrow

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  2. The poem does seem to become a memorial, Kristen, as you say.

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