Graves
Both of us had been closeto Joel, and at Joel’s death
my friend had gone to the wake
and the memorial service
and more recently he had
visited Joel’s grave, there
at the back of the grassy
cemetery among the trees,
“a quiet, gentle place,” he said,
“befitting Joel.” And I said,
“What’s the point of going
to look at graves?” I went
into one of my celebrated
tirades. “People go to look
at the grave of Keats or Hart
Crane, they go traveling just to
do it, what a waste of time.
What do they find there? Hell,
I wouldn’t go look at the grave of
Shakespeare if it was just
down the street. I wouldn’t
look at—” And I stopped. I
was about to say the grave of God
until I realized I’m looking at it
all the time....
This was one of those poems that make you stop and think. He makes a great point: what's the point of going to a grave. Especially after years and years. Its just a rock with inscriptions on it. But we honor the dead. It almost seems disrespectful that he wouldn't go see the grave of God. He again makes an eye opening point in saying that this whole world is His grave.
ReplyDeletewow. that is heavy. i think this poem is trying to make the reader realize that the earth is god's prized creation and that everything on it is his. every tree, every blade of grass. as each blade of grass dies, so does part of god's creation, it's a grave. that's just what i inferred.
ReplyDeleteThe poem's diction is concise and mild. I can relate to the people in this poem because one of my teachers is a 'grave-junkie'. He'll travel all over Britain videotaping his trip, and when he comes back he shows us the graves of lots of famous people. The majority of the poem the narrator is complaining about the people who wander around to look at dead people, but he doesn't realize until the end that he's being hypocritical. I like the idea of the world being God's grave. I've never thought about the world like that.
ReplyDeleteHayden Carruth has a very strong sense of confidence for going against society's religious views of death and burial. The poem changes in tone from the beginning towards the end by illustrating a harmonious depiction of their friend Joel and the surroundings. but then pulls a 180 by talking about how graves are unnecessary. The end of the poem is very deep and my depict that all of humankind is a grave of God.
ReplyDeleteVery interesting rendering. The ending makes me wonder if Carruth was influenced by Neitczsche. I like how he tells a story then proposes the idea rather than just saying, "God is dead".
ReplyDeleteThis was an eye opener poem. It really makes you think about values and morals. In my opinion comparing God's grave to any other persons is not a typical thing someone writes about. The religion. I feel like it could cause a lot of controversy with religious people. Also the ending is very powerful and really makes you stop and think about what exactly the author is trying to say. I liked the poem though, very interesting and an attention getter.
ReplyDeleteI do not understand what the speaker means by "the grave of God..looking at it all the time." Maybe he is implying that death is all around him or the author might be referring to a Christian source.
ReplyDeleteI must say this poem is pretty intense. He brings up a valid point when talking about the process of visiting graves. If you look at it from his perspective you can kind of see where he's coming from. The last couple of lines in the poem, where he talks about the "grave of god", were daunting. I've never thought of the world in that way. Interesting.
ReplyDeleteThis poem may be one of my favorite poems yet... and i think the reason i enjoy it so much is because its very thought provoking... I don't agree with his feeling that it is pointless to go look at a person's grave... to me it brings back good memories and leaves a good lasting impression on the person.. it is almost a way of connection to the deceased person... however the end of the poem when he mentions God's grave and says that "he's looking at it all the time" really makes me think about what he really means by that.. I really really enjoyed this poem!
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