# Death and Mortality in Poetry

> Theme guide for Poetry by James Weldon Johnson.

Death is portrayed as a peaceful release or a moral reckoning, as in 'Mother Night' and 'Go Down Death,' reflecting on the transient nature of life and the hope for an afterlife.

## Where it surfaces

- [The Color Sergeant](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/chapters/the-color-sergeant): The poem focuses on the soldier's dying moments, his wounds, and his final act of presenting arms to his Maker, emphasizing the dignity of death in service.
- [Brothers](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/chapters/brothers): The graphic depiction of the lynching, from the shrieks to the division of the corpse, centers on the physical and spiritual death of the victim.
- [Fragment](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/chapters/fragment): The imagery of a 'wedge' that 'lies cankering in the wound' evokes the persistent, death-like decay of unresolved historical sin.
- [The White Witch](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/chapters/the-white-witch): The encounter with the witch results in the ebbing of the soul and a living death.
- [Mother Night](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/chapters/mother-night): The speaker welcomes death as a peaceful return to the primordial darkness, contrasting with the 'feverish light' of life.
- [The Young Warrior](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/chapters/the-young-warrior): The mother's potential fears and the warrior's preparation for battle evoke themes of mortality and the acceptance of risk.
- [The Glory of the Day Was in Her Face](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/chapters/the-glory-of-the-day-was-in-her-face): The speaker's grief and the final line 'since she is gone' directly confront the reality of death and loss.
- [From the Spanish](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/chapters/from-the-spanish): The passage of twenty years and the mutual shock at each other's aged appearance highlight the inevitability of physical decline and mortality.
- [I Hear the Stars Still Singing](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/chapters/i-hear-the-stars-still-singing): The poem mourns a lost voice, emphasizing the finality of death and the enduring pain of absence.
- [Girl of Fifteen](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/chapters/girl-of-fifteen): The contrast between the girl's fifteen years and the speaker's forty summers and winters highlights the passage of time and the awareness of aging and mortality.
- [The Suicide](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/chapters/the-suicide): The poem centers on the choice of death as a means of escape and resistance against a lifetime of oppression.
- [Ghosts of the Old Year](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/chapters/ghosts-of-the-old-year): The death of the old year is personified, and the bell's tolling brings a sense of care akin to fright, emphasizing the finality of time and the mortality of human endeavors.
- [The Ghost of Deacon Brown](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/chapters/the-ghost-of-deacon-brown): Deacon Brown dies from his obsessive search for his hidden gold, and his ghost continues to haunt the living.
- [Omar](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/chapters/omar): The chapter contemplates life's mystery and the possibility of finding meaning, touching on existential themes.
- [Voluptas](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/chapters/voluptas): The imagery of choking and dying underscores the mortal cost of chasing illusions.
- [Life](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/chapters/life): The poem emphasizes the brevity of life, contrasting the 'infinite sea of eternity' with the 'island speck of time' that is human existence.
- [Sleep](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/chapters/sleep): The poem directly compares sleep to death, suggesting death is a peaceful, endless sleep without dreams, reframing mortality as a release from suffering.
- [Morning, Noon and Night](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/chapters/morning-noon-and-night): The night brings memory's 'bitter blight' and darkness, suggesting the end of love or life itself.
- [The Reward](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/chapters/the-reward): The speaker contemplates their own death and the legacy they will leave behind.
- ['Possum Song](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/chapters/possum-song): The possum's impending doom is central, with the hunter's gun and the slim chances of escape emphasizing the threat of death.
- [De Little Pickaninny’s Gone to Sleep](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/chapters/de-little-pickaninny-s-gone-to-sleep): The poem centers on the death of a child, describing the physical signs of death (cold hands, distant light) and the quiet sorrow of the parents.
- [Listen Lord](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/chapters/listen-lord): The prayer confronts death, sin, and the grave, while yearning for peaceful rest and eventual resurrection.
- [Go Down Death](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/chapters/go-down-death): Death is personified as a gentle, obedient servant who brings Sister Caroline to heaven, reframing mortality as a peaceful transition.
- [The Crucifixion](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/chapters/the-crucifixion): The crucifixion vividly portrays the physical and spiritual agony of death, along with the cosmic signs that accompany Jesus's passing.
- [The Judgment Day](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/chapters/the-judgment-day): The chapter vividly depicts the resurrection of the dead, the judgment of souls, and the finality of death as the wicked are cast into hell.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/themes/death_and_mortality
- Themes index: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/poetry_13_se/themes