The Recurring Theme of Death in the Poetry of Philip Larkin. Essay

The Recurring Theme of Death in the Poetry of Philip Larkin.In reading the poetry of Philip Larkin for the first time, one isstruck by the characteristically glum atmosphere that pervades most ofhis poems. The vast majority of his verse is devote to what isgenerally taken to be negative aspects of life, such as nakedness anddejection, disap summitments, neediness, and the terrifying prospect ofimpending death. Evidently, there are uplifting and humorous sides tohis work as well, but for certain reasons Larkin is invariablyidentified with a downhearted, pessimistic temper and tone of voice,conveying a constant find of failure and of disappointment thatunderlies all the more specific emotions and reflections of individualpoems.Frequently, Larkin is incisively sad, and one is amazed then at the widerange of things and events, from bullion (Money I listen to moneysinging It is intensely sad. (198)), to a delayed shave(Autobiography at an Air-Station, where the person obviously ha dhoped to leave before sunset, but rear endnot, because his gondola isseveral hours delayed. When he says I set So much on thisAssumption. instantly its failed (78), this response would appear a littleoversensitive, did not the title demo that something more is beingdealt with here than just an afternoon at the airport), that candepress him.Larkin can be violently energetic as well, and so deep is hisembitterment at times that he believes himself to be maliciouslytricked away of something he had originally been entitled to - althoughhe is very vague most who or what it was that cheated him, or thenature of his initial hopes. An illustrative case in point is thetitle of his second substantial volume of verse, ... ...is no genius of human contact and interaction, orwant of it.For Larkin, a sense of loss seems to be inevitable as life goes on,and his fatalistic - and somewhat bewildering - affray is that thecourse of ones life is essentially independent of ones actions.However , Larkin does not explicitly point the finger at one person,group or institution, although he comments on parents, society andlove as being flawed in early(a) poems. Larkins message of his poetry,coupled with the recurring theme of death, is that things just happento be the way they are, without anyone particularly wanting them to beso - a end point that furthermore is very much in line with Larkinsfatalistic soma of mind.WORKS CITED1 Larkin history found on www.philiplarkin.com (Philip Larkin Society)2 Larkin, Philip. self-collected Poems. London The Marvell Press, 1988.