Do Not Stand at My Grave and Weep

Anonymous

18 pages 36-minute read

Anonymous

Do Not Stand at My Grave and Weep

Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 1930

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Further Reading & Resources

Related Poems

"Ah, Are You Digging on My Grave" by Thomas Hardy (1913)


This satire of the Graveyard School poets also depicts a conversation between a departed soul and a graveside visitor, but one with a very different mood.


"To Autumn" by John Keats (1819)


Many overlapping images connect Keats’ poem to “Do Not Stand at My Grave and Weep,” along with the themes of immortality and transformation. Wind, grain, and especially birds contribute to mood and supply metaphors in both poems. Both poems close with circling birds, collecting before migration. Keats’ poem also enjoyed massive popularity; for many years, it was anthologized more times than any other poem in English.


"The Leash" by Ada Limon (2018)


Ada Limon’s direct-address, incantatory poem also repudiates death with perpetual motion and natural images.


"A Refusal to Mourn the Death, by Fire, of a Child in London" by Dylan Thomas (1937)


Although “Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night” might be the more obvious connection from this poet, Dylan Thomas uses some of the same images as “Do Not Go to My Grave and Weep” in this work. In this poem, though, darkness takes over light, and the movement—from “tumbling” in Line 6 to the “deep” of Line 19—spirals downward. The speaker here does not turn from mourning out of a belief in the immortality portrayed in “Do Not Go to My Grave and Weep.” In the complete reverse, the speaker does not want to “blaspheme” (Line 16) the child’s humanity by turning her death into ornament. Death in this poem marks finality, not transcendence.

Further Literary Resources

"Caught in Time’s Current: Margaret Atwood on Grief, Poetry, and the Past Four Years" by Margaret Atwood (2020)


Poet and novelist Margaret Atwood discusses personal grief within a public context, as well as the way time affects grief, memory, and perception. This short essay includes the poem “Dearly,” a bereavement poem from the perspective of the mourner.


"The Mystery of Britain’s Most Famous Funeral Poet" by Rosalind Jana (2021)


This article explores the authorship and appeal of “Do Not Stand at My Grave and Weep” after it became one of Britain’s most popular poems. Jana discusses some facets of popular poetry and its importance.


"Clare Harner’s ‘Immortality’" by Scott Norsworthy (1934)


Norsworthy’s Notes & Queries article seeks to establish Clare Harner as the true author of “Do Not Stand at My Grave and Weep,” citing publications and reprints. He also maintains a blog with photos of and links to many more of Harner’s early works.

Listen to Poem

"Do Not Stand at My Grave and Weep" music by Laura Farnell


The St. Cecilia Singers at the Diocesan School for Girls give a choral performance of the poem set to music by Laura Farnell.

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