'Thanatopsis: A View of Death' by William Cullen Bryant

A Young Person's View of Death

When I was a young child, I was afraid of death. When I heard that someone had died in my neighborhood, I ran home, jumped in bed, and covered my head because I did not want death to find me.

That was years ago, and as an ordained minister, I now preach funerals, deliver eulogies, and stand over coffins and commit bodies to the grave. I preached my own brother's funeral and took part in the services of both my parents, preached the funeral of several extended family members, and others.

• What happened between then and now?
• What made the shift in my thoughts about death and dying?
• What got me to take another look at death and to understand that death is not contagious like the common cold?
• What made me understand that because someone died in my neighborhood didn't mean death was trying to find me?

The answer to all of those questions is the same. I found the answer, and the answer found me when I was in college as an English and Literature major.

Meaning of "Thanatopsis"

I am no longer afraid of death or dying. I began to notice a shift in my thinking during my American Literature class when I was introduced to Thanatopsis, a poem by William Cullen Bryant that he wrote when he was 17 years old. People couldn't believe he wrote it because of its deep and profound meaning.

Thanatopsis means "a view of death." The title comes from the Greek words "thanatos" meaning "death" and "opsis" meaning "sight." Some people translate it as "Meditation Upon Death." I like to call it "A View of Death." And to make it more personal, I refer to it as "My View of Death."

Last Lines of Thanatopsis

While the eighty-two-line poem is a profound meditation on death, nature, and the continuity of life, the last nine lines are among the most spiritually resonant in American poetry. I learned those last lines so well when I was in college many decades ago that I can still recite them verbatim today. I like those lines so much that I'm requesting that they be put on my tombstone because they summarize my view of death.

Those “So live…” lines are not a warning, but an invitation to live with such grace and readiness to embrace death when it comes. Bryant wrote that we are to so live that when it is time for us to die, we should not fight it, but welcome it. We should not be afraid like a slave at night in a dungeon. Instead, we should be sustained and soothed with an unfaltering trust as we approach our grave, like one who wraps the covers from his bed around him and lies down to pleasant dreams.

To "So live..." with intention is the goal of those last nine lines. "So live" is a charge to live fully, so that when the time comes, we will meet death as a friend, and not a thief in the night. The lines are an invitation for people to live with purpose, testimony, and peace.

Conclusion of the matter

Like William Cullen Bryant, I believe death should be a wonderful experience! When I was young, I was afraid of death. I am glad I am no longer afraid. I am thankful that I was introduced to Thanatopsis long ago.

With a background in English and Literature, I have studied many poems, but I can honestly say that this is one of my favorites because it changed my life. I have used the title So Live! on many occasions when I delivered eulogies. Those who heard my explanation of those last nine lines in the poem have thanked me because they didn't know about the poem before.

So Live are the words that begin the last nine lines of a famous poem, but they are now my mantra by which I live my life. The words remind me to so live with intention, peace, and testimony. It reminds me that my death will not be the end. It will be the gentle closing of a well-lived chapter.

Those lines let me know that death is not a punishment. They invite not only me, but everyone, to so live in such a way that there will be a peaceful transition when the time comes. Death should not be met with fear and trembling, but with readiness.

True confession

I no longer fear death. I will embrace it when it comes. Not only that, but I pass William Cullen Bryant's words on to you:

"So live!"