Christina Rossetti’s poem, Song, has a deeper meaning than you might see at first glance. It is a sad poem about remembering and forgetting about her when she dies. She talks a lot about death, and encourages someone to not mourn for her because when she dies she will be happy and without pain. Rossetti shows this using symbolism.
In the first stanza of the poem, Rossetti makes a request to the person she is writing to. She says, “When I am dead, my dearest, sing no sad songs for me”. She goes on to say things like “Plant thou no roses at my head”. She urges the person not to do anything for her when she dies, and it doesn’t matter if they remember or forgets her. Saying this shows that it is okay if they forget about her. This is the request that shows she doesn’t want anyone to mourn for her.
The second stanza gives support to her request. She explains why no one should mourn for her, why remembering her is not important, and neither is forgetting her. For example, she says that she will not “see the shadows”, “feel the rain”, or “hear the nightingale”. These are all symbolizing negative things that she will no longer have to deal with.
In Christina Rossetti’s poem, she uses symbolizing to connect to the theme. She explains these things in a way showing that the things we do for the dead are actually for the living because the dead will never take part in it. Funerals, burials, and other events when someone dies don’t really matter. Rossetti has effectively communicated the theme.
By: The Britalit Group
Works Cited
Rossetti, Christina. “Song.” Poems of the Fantastic and Macabre, 15 Sept. 2013, poemsofthefantastic.com/song/.