Song: When I am dead, my dearestBy Christina RossettiThe speaker in the

poem requests no sorrowful tributes after her passing, as she enters a state of
oblivious rest.Verse One
When I am dead, my dearest,
Sing no sad songs for me;
Plant thou no roses at my head,
Nor shady cypress tree:
Be the green grass above me
With showers and dewdrops wet;
And if thou wilt, remember,
And if thou wilt, forget.
‘Song: When I am dead, my dearest’ is divided into two verses, each with
eight lines, each of which could be further broken down into
two quatrains, rhyming off an ABCB pattern. There is a clear rhythm and beat
to this work, and it is structured so as to flow in the most natural way for the
reader. The content of the poem follows an unnamed narrator speaking to
another individual identified only as “my dearest,” a strong word choice that
instills deeply-felt emotion into the first line of the poem.
The verse uses alliteration heavily to create pleasant sounds; the “dead” and
“dearest” in the first line and the “sing,” “sad,” and “songs” in the second lie, for
instance, give off a simple and calm atmosphere to the work.

The speaker is saying to someone important to them that they should not
grieve once the narrator passes away. They cite some of the things that
people do in remembrance, such as placing flowers at a gravesite, writing sad
songs, and planting trees, and asks that these rituals are not observed.
Instead, they ask their companion to “be the green grass above me.” Grass is
a plant that can be stepped on, drowned in rain, or put through drought and
continue to grow. “Being the grass” is a likely metaphor for enduring, and
continuing to move forward with life. The last two lines use repetition to
emphasize the idea that whether their companion wishes to remember or
forget the speaker, it is all the same. By changing only one work in those lines,
Rossetti creates a sense of calm and creed; “and if thou wilt” very much
embodies this idea that grief is personal and that it is important for their
companion to think about what they would like, rather than what the dead
would like.

Verse Two
 I shall not see the shadows,
I shall not feel the rain;
I shall not hear the nightingale
Sing on, as if in pain;
And dreaming through the twilight
That doth not rise nor set,
Haply I may remember,
And haply may forget.
In the second verse, the speaker discusses their own experience after
passing, but there is not much for them to say, as they are still alive. Instead,
they focus on what they will not experience, and in each example, a sense of
sorrow is instilled in the poem. There will be no “shadows;” no “rain,” and no
“painful” songs from the nightingales. Each word creates an image of dark,
with the rain especially emulating the image of tears. Once again, repetition is
used to great effect, influencing what the speaker “shall not” know of, without
really understanding what they “shall” be. The unfathomable nature of death to
the living is another strong theme echoed throughout this poem, and just as
the nature of grieving can be embodied by “if thou wilt,” the abstract nature of
death can be embodied with “I shall not.”

In the second half of this verse, the speaker does touch slightly on what they
believe death will be like. This time, the images are ambiguous and vague;
they consider it to be like dreaming of an infinite twilight. The image of a dream
calls to mind the idea of something that is simultaneously real and imagined,
while the image of twilight is one that is both light and dark at once. The verse
and poem concludes with an inverse of the theme that ended the previous
verse; this time it is the speaker who may be remembering or forgetting, but it
is unclear exactly what they have focused their mind on — life? Their
companion? It is ambiguous; vague. It is treated as such in the text, but that
first verse that speaks of not mourning death, but moving on with life suggests
that while the speaker is not entirely prepared to conceive of death as a good
thing, it is certainly inevitable, and so they are choosing not to think of it as a
bad thing either.

Historical Context
Christina Rossetti lived between December 5th, 1830, and December 29th,
1894. Her poem Song was first published in her 1862 volume, Goblin Market
and Other Poems, largely considered her most successful work, especially at
the time of its publication. What inspired this particular poem is likely the fact
that Rossetti dealt with a variety of issues with her mental and physical health
throughout her life, leaving her with a great many potential times to reflect
upon the nature of her own mortality. As early as when she was fourteen years
old, she suffered a nervous breakdown that saw her withdraw from her school
and receive a home education with a notable religious element; Christina
Rossetti, along with her family, became deeply involved in Anglo-Catholicism.
This led to the declining of three separate engagements offered to Rossetti in
her teenage years, and she never married in her adulthood.

Apart from this, she was diagnosed later in her life with Graves’ Disease and
suffered bouts of depression periodically through her adulthood as well. By the
time Song was written, Rossetti had turned down her suitors already, so it
seems likely that the “dearest” addressed to in the poem was meant either as
a general mark of fondness, or as an address to a family member. Shortly
before the poem’s publication, Rossetti experienced a crisis of faith that arose
from a bout of depression. Dealing with all of this, her Song was likely written
as a means of comforting her own self, and accepting the potential realities
held by death (and indeed, after her death her works remained popular, and
her contributions have earned her a feast day in the Anglican Calendar — April
27th).

It is clear that throughout her life, Rossetti fought some very unpleasant and
very difficult emotions that might have otherwise ruined the life of an excellent
poet who has expressed some of those feelings in Song, which is all the more
powerful when the reader remembers the difficult life endured by the woman
who wrote it.

Love, Death, and Mourning

The speaker of “When I Am Dead, My Dearest” tells a loved one not to worry about remembering
her after she has died, because she won’t be able to tell the difference: in death, the speaker says,
she will be far removed from the concerns of this world, with no awareness as to whether or not
her "dearest" mourns her. The speaker isn’t even sure if she will remember her beloved in the
mysterious “twilight” of death. For this speaker, the usual ceremonies around death and grieving
are done more for the living than the dead—on whom there’s simply no point in wasting too much
energy.
 "When I am Dead, my Dearest" is a poem written by Christina Rossetti, a prominent English poet of
the Victorian era. Here are some key points about the poem:

.
Title Significance: The title suggests a contemplation of mortality and the speaker's anticipation
of their own death.
.
.
Themes of Love and Loss: The poem explores themes of love, loss, and the transience of human
relationships. The speaker addresses their "dearest" with affection and tenderness, expressing a
desire for remembrance even after death.
.
.
Sense of Separation: The poem conveys a sense of separation between the speaker and their
loved one. Even in death, the speaker longs for a connection with their beloved, indicating the
enduring nature of their bond.
.
.
Emotional Tone: Rossetti's poem is characterized by its emotional depth and sincerity. The
speaker's words convey a mixture of longing, resignation, and a poignant awareness of life's
impermanence.
.
.
Imagery: The poem employs simple yet powerful imagery to evoke a sense of loss and longing.
The image of the speaker lying "in the silent grave" serves as a stark reminder of mortality, while
the reference to "violets" symbolizes love and remembrance.
.
.
Rhyme and Meter: Rossetti's poem is written in a traditional lyrical form, with a consistent rhyme
scheme (ABAB) and iambic tetrameter. This formal structure contributes to the poem's musicality
and emotional resonance.
.
.
Reflection on Death: "When I am Dead, my Dearest" reflects Rossetti's preoccupation with
themes of death and spirituality, which are recurrent motifs in her poetry. The poem offers a
contemplative meditation on the passage of time and the inevitability of mortality.
.
.
Legacy and Remembrance: Despite the speaker's acknowledgment of their own mortality, the
poem suggests a desire for immortality through the memory of their loved one. The speaker's plea
to be remembered reflects a hope for enduring significance beyond the confines of earthly
existence.
.

Overall, "When I am Dead, my Dearest" is a poignant exploration of love, loss, and the enduring
power of memory. Through its evocative imagery and emotional depth, the poem resonates with
readers by capturing the universal experience of mortality and the longing for connection beyond
the boundaries of life.
The poem begins with the speaker addressing a loved one who would mourn her if she were to
die. With a striking lack of sentimentality, the speaker instructs this person not to grieve her when
the time comes. This person should “Sing no sad songs” to mark the speaker’s passing, nor plant
“roses” and “cypress tree[s]” (plants often planted to commemorate the dead) by the speaker’s
grave.

Instead, all the speaker needs above her grave is green grass, wet with rain and dew. In other
words, nothing special! This growing grass reflects the natural world moving on above the
speaker's grave, unaffected by her passing. Symbolically, it also suggests that the speaker
hopes her beloved will likewise move on—that this person will focus on living rather than on
mourning the dead.

The speaker goes on to say that whether she’s remembered or forgotten doesn’t really matter,
given that she won’t be around to notice. After death, the speaker will no longer “see the
shadows,” “feel the rain,” nor “hear the nightingale” singing.

Whether this is because her spirit will have moved on to better things or because she has simply
ceased to exist, the speaker doesn't anticipate a lingering attachment to this world. Instead, the
speaker imagines death as “dreaming through [a] twilight / That doth not rise nor set”—a kind of
eternal sleep, in which she’ll be unaware of what’s happening on earth.

The speaker also doesn’t know whether she’ll be able to remember life on earth while in this
endless slumber. The speaker ends the poem by saying they may “Haply [...] remember” or “haply
[...] forget” the things that happened while she was alive. The word “haply,” which means by
chance or luck, implies that the speaker isn’t sure what will become of her own memories after she
dies. In a sense, she’s telling her beloved that it’s okay to forget her without knowing for certain
that the forgetting will be mutual.

The poem ultimately suggests that the mysteriousness of death justifies not wasting what little time
one has on earth. It’s important not to expend too much energy on those who won't be around to
appreciate it.

Symbols
Roses and the Cypress Tree

The roses and cypress trees in the poem symbolize traditional mourning—the typical ways in
which the living go about commemorating the dead.


This symbolism has deep roots: the ancient Greeks and Romans associated the cypress tree with
death because of its inability to regrow if cut back too much, and it's one of the most common
trees planted in cemeteries across European and Muslim countries. Roses, of course, are linked
with love and are often placed at loved ones' headstones.


Importantly, roses and cypress trees are also alive. In a way, then, they also represent the idea
that the mourning rituals people partake cannot reach the dead. Such rituals stem from the world
of the living, and are done for the living themselves.


That's why the speaker of this poem asks that she not be mourned with roses and cypress trees.
As far as she can see, there's no point in these rituals because once she's dead, she won't be
around to appreciate them. She would rather her loved one move on, regardless of whether that
means remembering or forgetting their time together.

Green Grass

The "green grass" here symbolizes the way that life carries on in the face of death. Such grass
will grow and thrive above the speaker's grave, and this speaks to the way that the world will keep
on turning after the speaker dies.

The grass, then, is also a symbol of what the speaker hopes for her beloved: that this person will
continue to grow and flourish in her absence.

The color green itself often symbolizes youth, spring, and rebirth. Perhaps, then, the green grass
here further suggests that the speaker will be reborn in some way, existing in some kind of afterlife
where she may or may not remember her time on earth (or simply that her body will nourish the
ground on which the grass grows).

The Nightingale

The nightingale (a kind of songbird) has been a symbol of lament (a passionate expression of
grief, sorrow, or mourning) in classical literature since the ancient Greeks first associated it with
Philomela.
According to myth, Philomela was a princess of Athens who was raped by her sister's husband,
King Tereus of Thrace. When she threatened to tell everyone about his crime, Tereus cut out her
tongue. Later, she exacted revenge on him (there are many variations of this part of the story),
and when he came after her in a rage, the gods turned Philomela into a nightingale so that she
could his wrath.

In this poem, the speaker says that once she is dead, she will no longer hear the nightingale's
lament. On the surface, this paints death as a kind of relief from the pain and sorrow of this world.
Yet, at the same time, the nightingale's song is also renowned for its beauty. It commonly
represents not just sorrow, but also the beauty of nature and the artistry of poets. As such, the
nightingale in this poem is a symbol of all the things the dead can no longer feel once they are
gone: sadness and beauty and sorrow and joy.