Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

"Sea Burial" by John Ciardi is a hauntingly beautiful meditation on death and the eternal cycle of life and dissolution. Through the metaphor of a sea burial, Ciardi explores the transition from life to death, depicting it as a natural and serene passage. The poem's vivid imagery and fluid movement convey a sense of peace and acceptance, juxtaposed with the inherent sadness and finality of death.

The opening stanza sets the scene with the speaker looking "Through the sea's crust of prisms," capturing the ethereal beauty of the underwater world. The "run of light above the swell" and the descent "Into the darkness closing like a shell" suggest the journey from life into the unknown depths of death, a movement from light into darkness, from the known to the mysterious.

Ciardi's use of the word "Oblique" to begin the second stanza introduces the notion of an indirect or gradual decline, likening the process of dying to the natural fall of leaves from a tree. This metaphor extends the theme of death as part of the natural order, a "season and surrender" that is inevitable and universal. The "windows of a wind" and the "final ruined lawn beneath a sea" evoke images of transition and change, the final resting place that awaits all life.

The third stanza describes the act of "glide, glide and fall" into death as a gentle descent "Into the crushing fog, pale and refracted." The comparison of the deceased to a jellyfish, "Seen dimly and then lost," emphasizes the ephemeral nature of life and the ease with which existence can slip into oblivion. The jellyfish, with its cycle of expansion and contraction, symbolizes the breath of life, pulsing and vibrant, until it "closed forever."

The final stanza reflects on the memories and experiences of the deceased, "The memory that kissed a mountain girl / And ran on grass as if it could not die." These lines capture the vitality and joy of life, the moments of love and freedom that define existence. Yet, these too are subject to the inexorable force of time, destined to "make a stain on stone and liquefy," disappearing into the vastness of the sea and the collective memory of the world.

"Sea Burial" is a contemplative and lyrical exploration of death's naturalness and inevitability. Through its rich imagery and profound sense of calm, Ciardi offers a perspective on death that is both sobering and uplifting, reminding us of the beauty and transience of life and the universal journey towards the final, peaceful embrace of the sea.

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