Death is one of the only themes that is truly universal. Poets have been writing about death from the beginning of recorded history, fearing it, fighting it, and embracing it. Depending on the content of the poem, readers might find themselves thrust into a world where death is ever-present or one in which the main character is peacefully carried to their fate.
For a handpicked selection of the most profound and moving death poems, explore our curated list of the 10 Best Poems About Death, and, importantly, what they teach us about death.
‘Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night’ is Dylan Thomas’s most famous work, penned in response to his father’s death. This powerful poem urges resistance against the inevitable nature of death, encapsulating Thomas’s rich imagery and universal themes.
Thomas addresses the universality of death and encourages the reader to remain strong until the end. The poem opens with its famous lines, “Do not go gentle into that good night, / Old age should burn and rave at close of day.” Through powerful and skillfully composed language, Thomas encourages his father and the larger population to realize the importance of their own lives by fighting back against the dark.
‘Because I could not stop for death,’ Dickinson’s best-known poem, is a depiction of one speaker’s journey into the afterlife with personified “Death” leading the way.
Death is a central theme in 'Because I could not stop for Death,' and Dickinson portrays it as a natural and peaceful event. The personification of Death as a gentleman suitor challenges traditional views of death as a scary or dreaded event, offering a thought-provoking perspective on the final journey of life.
‘Do Not Stand at My Grave and Weep’ by Mary Frye, written with heartfelt compassion, has touched millions experiencing loss and grief.
In this touching poem, 'Do Not Stand at My Grave and Weep', by Mary Frye, she speaks of death in a welcoming tone. These words are words of comfort to those who are mourning because the speaker has claimed that she does not sleep in the grave but that she is still with them in the elements of nature.
‘The Raven’ by Edgar Allan Poe presents an eerie raven who incessantly knocks over the speaker’s door and says only one word – “Nevermore.”
This poem is a fairly long, supernatural, dream-like poem. There is loss, death, fear and, and above all else, the haunting presence of the talking raven. The creature cries throughout the text, a single word: “Nevermore.” If you are looking for the perfect poem to set the scene for Halloween, to start off a dark night in delving into the scariest examples of writing in the English language, this is a great place to start.
Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore—
While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.
‘On the Death of Anne Brontë’ by Charlotte Brontë describes the poet’s grief over her beloved sister’s death and her relief that Anne’s suffering has ended.
In this moving poem Charlotte Brontë describes her grief over her beloved sister’s death as well as her relief that Anne’s suffering has ended. The poem goes through the stages of death and grief, depicting Anne’s final days as ones filled with pain. At the end, Charlotte turns to God and rather than curse him, thanks him for bringing her sister peace.
‘After’ by Marston captures the eternal ache of loss, where brief joys transition to lasting sorrow, reflecting on grief’s permanence.
The theme of death is an integral part of this poem. Marston describes how his speaker had very little time with his loved one. Her kiss is still dry on his lips, but she is no longer with him. He further explores how his life is going to be: “long, long years to weep in…And eternity to sleep in.”
‘Eden Rock’ evokes nostalgia, depicting a timeless picnic with his parents, blending memory with longing for familial unity.
The theme of death is an integral part of this piece. Causely imagines his father and mother in their twenties gathering in a spot beyond Eden Rock, another imaginary location. This image makes the speaker sad as he is aware of the fact that his parents are no longer with him.
They are waiting for me somewhere beyond Eden Rock:
‘Lines Inscribed Upon a Cup Formed From a Skull’ was written in 1808 and expresses Byron’s disdainful thoughts surrounding death.
Death is a central theme of the poem, revolving around the speaker's disdain for the inevitable decay that accompanies death. Life is fleeting, one minute you're alive and in love, and the next thing you know your skull is being used as a wine goblet. This is at least preferable to the speaker, who shudders at the thought of being "reptile's food." There is even a hint of macabre apathy in their embrace of death over the transience of life, remarking, "Why not—since through life’s little day / Our heads such sad effects produce?" Byron's diction ("Redeemed") in the following line implies that it is only after our lives have expired can any lasting purpose or significance be achieved in service to others.
‘You Will Know When You Get There’ by Allen Curnow embraces the inevitability of death via the figurative imagery of a descent into the sea.
One of the core themes of Curnow's poem is the belief that it's better to embrace the certainty of death as opposed to uselessly running from it. Yet that fact, bleak though it may be, reveals the necessity to make peace with mortality. The speaker's anecdote seeks to remedy a modern refusal to acknowledge its very existence, thereby hindering the ability to ever prepare or even consider its imminent arrival.
Nobody comes up from the sea as late as this
in the day and the season, and nobody else goes down
Bishop’s poem, ‘First Death in Nova Scotia’, is the detailed description of a child’s first encounter with death and the emotions this discovery causes.
This poem is told from the perspective of a young child who is experiencing death for the first time. Her mother brought her to see the body of her recently deceased cousin. The cousin was “all white, like a doll”. At the conclusion of the poem the speaker expresses concern over how the cousin, Arthur, will make it to court with the royals that hang in paintings on his walls, with his “eyes shut up so tight”.
‘My Butterfly’ by Richard Frost is a poignant reflection on life’s fleeting beauty and inevitable loss.
The poem takes hold of death as one of life’s palettes and puts the speaker face-to-face with his mortality through the death of the butterfly. Death, therefore, becomes a natural process in Robert Frost’s works, and the author uses this element to remind the readers that life is fleeting. The concept that being is fleeting is shown in the text through the sad story of the butterfly’s death.
‘A Poison Tree’ presents the consequences of harboring anger, which becomes a poisonous tree wreaking devastation.
Death is central to the poem, symbolizing the ultimate consequence of suppressed wrath and deception. The foe’s lifeless body beneath the tree underscores how unresolved hostility can lead to fatal outcomes, emphasizing the destructive power of nurturing anger and hatred.
Donne’s ‘Death, be not proud,’ rooted in the Christian idea of the afterlife, challenges the personified death, exposing its illusory power.
This is one of the best-known poems about death, transforming it from a fearsome force into a help. It subverts death's fear, reversing the power dynamics between death and humans, boldly calling out personified, misguided death, 'Death, be not proud.' The speaker scathingly diminishes death's authority, calling it a mere 'slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men,' associated with lowly things like 'poison, war, and sickness.' Showing belief in Christianity, the speaker asserts that death cannot truly kill; instead, it merely puts humans in a sleep-like state, aiding in the soul's deliverance to another realm.
Stevie Smith’s ‘Not Waving but Drowning’ is a tragic account of a dead man whose cry for help is mistakenly regarded as a mere greeting.
Death or rather the fear of death is an important theme present in Smith’s poem. This piece is about a dead man’s hand gestures while drowning. His cry for help and, at the same time, alertness of the fact that he is too far to be understood or heard, hints at his cold acceptance of death.
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