Thanatopsis

1
Thanatopsis
2

• The underlying theme of the poem is death and a
  new way of looking at it.
• The speaker in the first stanza is contemplating
  death.
• Nature is personified and becomes the speaker in
  the second stanza.

3

• Nature tells us that death is fineactually a
  good thing because once you die you are buried
  and your body will rot, making you an element of
  nature (you will fertilize the earth).
• Nature says that death is okay because it happens
  to everybody no matter the social class.

4

• Nature tells us that life goes on after we are
  dead, and even if nobody cares when we die, we
  are not the only ones that will die.
• Nature finally tells us not to fear death because
  it is a part of nature.