analysis eassy on Elegy Writte

A detailed Summary of analysis eassy on Elegy Writte

Thomas Gray and William Cullen Bryant both chose to write about nature and death being intertwined. Since Thomas Gray lived in a time of social injustice, he chose to use death to illustrate the problems inherent in a socially stratified society. William Cullen Bryant, on the other hand, lived in a rapidly expanding young nation that cherished the vast amounts of untouched nature and he used death to illustrate how man fits into the universal truth of the earth. However, both men believed that death rendered all men equal in that all went to their final resting place in Mother Nature's bosom. While Gray's "Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard" comes across as a social commentary on the English peasants and Bryant's "Thanatopsis" serves as a catalog of American Romantic beliefs, both believe that one must listen to nature, that death makes all men equal, and that man returns to nature after death.

: : To compare how the poems minor themes are similar, one must first understand their major themes' differences. "Elegy" differs so greatly from "Thanatopsis" because they came from vastly different times and countries. Gray wrote "Elegy" in eighteenth century England after the death of one of his friends. Influenced by the Engl

: : While Gray, like most English Romantics, illustrates the fight of the common man, "Thanatopsis" reflects the American Romantics love of nature. Bryant believes that nature reflects one's moods: "She speaks a various language...She has a voice of gladness...she glides into his darker musings" By mentioning the gamut of human emotions, Bryant reveals the American Romantics' belief that man must embrace his many emotions. Bryant views death as a positive experience because after death, man becomes a part of the Over-soul, the omnipresent spirit that binds all living things. When man returns to this collective unconscious, he becomes omniscient because he is now a part of the universal truth that governs all; this stands as a cornerstone of American Romantic beliefs and as the theme of "Thanatopsis"(McLean, 77). Despite the differences in their intent, both poems harbor the belief that all men will return to nature and all will be equal at death.

: : With patriarchs of the infant world-- with kings

: : However, Gray also employs the images to equate the peasants to the nature that they will become a part of, the gem and flower like Bryant's rock and oak. In the epitaph, Gray once again shows that he will rest in God's country when he says, "Here rests his head upon the lap of Earth." and he lays on "The bosom of his Father and his God" which symbolizes nature.

: : "Elegy" and "Thanatopsis" manifest death's ability to equalize all men. Bryant, in offering consolation for death, assures the reader that:

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1686
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English