He wants to leave “a name that will not perish in the dust”. Now, as he stands before their graves, knowing that he has all of eternity to be buried with them, he resolves himself to be done spending his time among the dead. He knows that eventually, his place will be in the grave with the rest who have gone before him, and he has sought to learn from them in life. Then he says that he will travel on with the dead “through all futurity”. This is why he says, “my place with them will be”. He knows that he, too, will spend more time in the grave than alive. He knows that life is short and that the graves he looks at are those of people who have been in the grave infinitely longer than they lived. He knows that soon (anon), he will be buried with the rest. The speaker then claims that his “hopes are with the dead, anon”. He says that he will learn from those who have lived before him and that from them he will seek “instruction with an humble mind”.

He mentions “their virtues” as well as “their faults” and he claims that he “partake their hopes and fears”. He knows that there are great lessons to be learned by those who have lived and died. He is keenly aware of the effect they have had in shaping his life, whether he knew them or not. To him, they are not simply the decaying bodies of people he has never known. The speaker then delves deeper into his connection with the dead. Their virtues love, their faults condemn, This is what he means when he says that his “cheeks have often been bedew’d with tears of thoughtful gratitude”. He believes that he owes everything to those who went before him, and his gratitude to them is so great that he has often shed tears of thankfulness. He feels he can talk to them about his delights in life, and “seek relief” in conversing with them about his grief. With these lines of ‘My Days among the Dead are Past’, the speaker reveals why he feels such a deep connection with the dead. Those days are past.Īn alternative view is that the narrator is stood in a library and the “mighty minds of old” are the authors of the books. The title, however, reveals that the speaker has decided to be done spending his time conversing with the dead. This gives the reader the image of a man who chooses to spend his time among the gravestones, talking to those who have been long dead, admiring their lives and deaths, and counting himself among them. He also claims that he talks with them every day. He preferred to be with “the mighty minds of old” and he felt such a connection with them as to call them his “never-failing friends”. They reveal that the speaker once found himself spending his time among the dead. The first few lines of this poem give insight into the title. My Days among the Dead are Past Analysis First Stanza There are two different titles to this poem as well, and each title gives the poem a different meaning. There are two valid interpretations of this poem. The speaker is likely to represent the author himself.

This particular poem was published three years before his death, but it is speculated that Robert Southey wrote ‘My Days among the Dead are Past’ many years earlier. However, he also realizes that if he wants to be like the greatest of them, he must stop living among the dead, and start interacting with the living. He learns from their lives, and he knows that his future is with them. He walks among them, talks with them, and counts himself as one of them.

On Reading Mr.In this poem, ‘My Days among the Dead are Past’, Robert Southey speaks from the point of view of a man who identifies with the dead rather than the living.To Brother Jonathan (Martin Farquhar Tupper Poems).How The Fatuous Wish Of A Peasant Came True (Guy Wetmore Carryl Poems).Readers Who Like This Poem Also Like: Based on Topics: Love Poems, Mind Poems, Friendship Poems, Name Poems, Fear Poems, Past Poems, Trust Poems, Humility Poems, Gratitude Poemsīased on Keywords: never-failing, futurity, bedew, long-past English Eclogues II - The Grandmother's Tale (Robert Southey Poems).English Eclogues VI - The Ruined Cottage (Robert Southey Poems).English Eclogues IV - The Sailor's Mother (Robert Southey Poems).English Eclogues I - The Old Mansion-House (Robert Southey Poems).English Eclogues V - The Witch (Robert Southey Poems).A Ballad, Shewing How An Old Woman Rode Double, And Who Rode Before Her (Robert Southey Poems).(Robert Southey) More Poetry from Robert Southey: Robert Southey Poems based on Topics: Love, Mind, Friendship, Fear, Name, Past, Humility, Trust, Gratitude

My days among the dead are past