'Song: When I am Dead, My Dearest' by Christina Rossetti

[@malaykahere4694]

I've a paper tomorrow and I'm so happy that i found this video. It's really helpful.

[@MrBenAckland]

Good! Hope it went well 😊

[@malaykahere4694]

@@MrBenAckland sure it did I got an A 🌺All thanks to you Sir....

[@MrBenAckland]

Well done!!

[@pedrozilla99]

Thank you Ben! You're a very intelligent person and my ears very much appreciate your explanation! All the best for you

[@MrBenAckland]

All the best to you too.

[@labanchris888]

It wasn't written in 1862, rather was published in 1862. It was written in 1848.

[@bredamaune2028]

Thanks Ben for this clear and concise analysis.

[@MrBenAckland]

Glad it was helpful 😊

[@Matyouloid]

I have a question regarding the line "be the green grass above me". My interpretation is that she's asking the person who will be left behind to become part of the nature as the only way to be close to her when she dies. What I mean is that I thought that that "be" is an imperative second person singular that's addressing the addressée specifically (so that it's not "let the green grass be above me", but "be the green grass above me"). As if to say: mourning me is no use, I will go back to nature, and if you won't forget and you will want to be close to me, looo for me in nature, which I will return no when I'm dead. Do you think it's a bit far-fetched?

[@MrBenAckland]

No, I agree with your reading of that line - that's how I see it too. It's a really unsentimental (and unVictorian?) thing to say!

[@Matyouloid]

@@MrBenAckland Maybe here is where her pre-raphaelite soul comes out haha By the way, thanks for your insightful analysis, Ben. Greetings from Italy, Mattia

[@MrBenAckland]

Thanks, Mattia. Greetings from London!

[@majidaheer4277]

Ben. Wonderful description of mirroring the last lines of the two stanzas (the couplets). Though detailed description of the Ovid s Metamorphosis(nightingale) here seems to be somewhat overloading

[@MrBenAckland]

Fair point - I do get a little carried away with the Ovid, and not just for this poem! But I do love those stories 😊

[@majidaheer4277]

@@MrBenAckland that's welcoming note and your approach to them was amazing. It was a great effort.love it.

[@aqsakanwal8785]

what type of poem is this?a ballad?sonnet?soliloquy?elegy?lyric?narrative? A reply would be greatly appreciated. :)

[@MrBenAckland]

Hi there. It's lyrical in that it's in the first person and prioritises emotions over story. If this had been the other way around we'd call it a narrative poem. An elegy would be a lament for the dead whereas this one seems to be anti-lament! Soliloquy is a first person voice spoken in drama to let an audience know the private thoughts of a character. Ballads and sonnets have characteristic forms and structures. See 'Maude Clare' for an example of a ballad (song-like, storytelling) and her poem 'Remember' for a sonnet. Hope that helps :)

[@musicaltheresa]

Ben, Is it okay if I link to this on my FaceBook Christina Rossetti "Songs of Hope" page?

[@MrBenAckland]

Yes of course!

[@ruqiyakhan9252]

Really helpful

[@MrBenAckland]

Glad to hear it :)