A Deeper Look Into Trethewey's "After your Death" (H) – Class Post 01/26/2010

The poem I have chosen to look at in more depth is “After your Death” an assigned poem for class. I will explore the moods, symbolism, and sounds in the poem that I noticed both in my initial reading of the poem and after careful analysis. I will also take a look at how the poem related to life even now, not only in the times of the Civil War.

Immediately while reading the poem I noticed the changing moods of the poem indicated in the different stanzas. The title instantly puts a mood of sadness to the poem, which is continued in the first stanza, although the narrator is very matter-of-fact about what must be done. However, with words like “emptied,” and phrases such as “bruised from your touch,” it is easy to feel the depression of the speaker and the true emptiness they must feel from the death of the loved one they have lost. In the second stanza, there is a more hopeful feeling in the words. The narrator talks of things being “preserved” as though there is still hope. Also, he speaks of another day and a later time to come, indicating that all is not lost and there is still life in his emotions. The third and forth stanzas took me back to a sad and depressed feeling using wording such as “rotting,” “split,” “swarm” and “hollowing.” It also brought back the theme of emptiness and loss. Nevertheless, in the last line of the poem we are taken aback by the hopeful voice that comes through speaking of the possibilities of tomorrow.

Although the speaker uses symbolism throughout the poem to represent how she is feeling, I noticed the greatest amount of symbolism in the third stanza of this poem. I saw this particularly in the figs that were picked by the narrator. I find that the first fig being already half-eaten and partially rotting symbolized the type of emotions she could have been feeling. Her feelings are symbolized even more so in the second fig. The fact that it was “being taken from the inside” represented the pain she felt that must have been tearing her apart from the inside, although it wasn’t always obvious to an outsider.

Using the sounds of the poem when I read it out loud I noticed that the end of each line went on into the next with the exception of the last two lines. It is as if the narrator is trudging along but forcing herself to continue to the next step. I found this interesting because she is again showing her feelings through the way the poem is written.

Personally, I was especially affected by this poem because of the way it was very relatable to anyone who has experienced the loss of a loved one. The mixture of feelings and the grieving process of feeling depressed and empty while also having hope for the future that you are still able to live really reminded me of my own experiences. I appreciated that the poem ended on a note of hopefulness and an optimistic look at “Tomorrow, the bowl I have yet to fill.”