Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Dorianne Laux’s “Trying to Raise the Dead” is a poignant and desperate exploration of grief, longing, and the human desire to connect with the lost. Through a blend of conversational tone, stark imagery, and raw emotion, Laux captures the speaker’s attempt to breach the divide between life and death, revealing the fragility of faith and the persistence of love.

The poem is set on a deck in Oregon, a place both mundane and significant in its ordinariness. The speaker stands apart from the lively gathering inside the house, where friends sing and play guitars, underscoring the isolation that grief often brings. The casual mention of “It’s not my house, you don’t know them” establishes a sense of detachment—not just from the setting but from the living world itself. This separation mirrors the divide between the speaker and the one they mourn, creating a thematic parallel that underpins the poem.

The direct address to the departed—“Look at me”—is a striking opening, blending command with vulnerability. The act of speaking to the dead is inherently paradoxical, an act of both hope and futility. The speaker’s whispers reflect a desire for intimacy but also a fear of being overheard and judged. This tension between the private and the public, the seen and unseen, threads through the poem, highlighting the speaker’s internal struggle to reconcile the reality of loss with the yearning for connection.

Laux employs vivid natural imagery to evoke the speaker’s environment and emotional state. The “leaves swarming on the black air” and the “moon, half-lit and barren, stuck like an ax between the branches” reflect the speaker’s turmoil and the fractured nature of their world without the lost one. These images, both beautiful and haunting, suggest a universe that is indifferent to human suffering, further emphasizing the speaker’s isolation.

The central question—“What are you now?”—is both philosophical and deeply personal. By asking whether the departed has become “Air? Mist? Dust? Light?” the speaker grapples with the nature of existence and the possibility of transformation after death. The absence of certainty drives the desperation of the plea: “Give me something. I have to know where to send my voice.” This line encapsulates the human need for direction in grief, the longing for a tangible place to direct love and sorrow. Without a “where,” the speaker’s voice—and their love—remains untethered, echoing into the void.

The tone becomes increasingly urgent as the speaker begs for any response: “Say anything. I’m ready to believe. Even lies, I don’t care.” This raw admission lays bare the speaker’s vulnerability and the depth of their need. The willingness to accept even lies underscores the unbearable weight of silence, the void left by the absence of the departed. The mention of “burning bush” and “stone” invokes biblical imagery, suggesting a yearning for divine or supernatural intervention, a miracle to restore faith or provide closure.

The poem’s ending is particularly striking in its convergence of the mundane and the sacred. The speaker situates themselves in a specific moment—“It’s April. I’m on Spring Street. That’s my gray car in the driveway.” This grounding in ordinary details contrasts with the extraordinary act of attempting to communicate with the dead. The juxtaposition underscores the tension between the physical world, bound by time and space, and the metaphysical realm, where the speaker seeks solace.

The final image—“I’m the only one here on my knees”—is profoundly moving. It captures the speaker’s solitude and the humility of their grief, the act of kneeling evoking both prayer and surrender. The line also suggests a kind of devotion, a commitment to remembering and reaching for the lost, even in the face of silence and absence.

“Trying to Raise the Dead” is a deeply human meditation on love, loss, and the persistence of hope. Laux’s use of direct address, vivid imagery, and conversational tone creates a powerful and relatable portrait of grief. The poem resonates with the universal experience of longing for connection with those who are gone and the struggle to find meaning in their absence. Through the speaker’s desperate plea, Laux reminds us of the enduring power of love and the courage it takes to face the void it leaves behind.

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