I chose this topic due to its subject matter and the tone of it. Its tone is not one of despair or loss, it is one of hope and the belief that nothing is ever lost only remade in a more beautiful image. Even the title itself “All Shall Be Restored” gives you the idea and belief that in the end the individual and all his mistakes will be wiped clean. Whatever bad we have seen or done will not matter anymore. Parts of this poem seem to rest in the religious belief in human beings as the flock and a higher power as the Sheppard, as shown in “The grain shall be collected / from the thousand shores” it seems that the majority of cultures and countries do believe in life after death, indeed for the most part most cultures, ours included, believe that if you lead an honorable life you will be rewarded with peace and also restoration in the next life, as the poem alludes to. To a certain degree it would seem that this poem, as many religious teachings also, somewhat gives you something to, maybe not look forward to, but at least feel hopeful and peaceful about. The mistake that many practices make is to try to scare people into being “good” and in the end all that such practices accomplish is to make people turn away and lookdown upon them. Practices and works such as this one serve to promote the idea that in the end, death is just another chapter of life.
Specifically, American culture, at least popular culture stresses the same messages as this poem and its title. From a relatively young age the majority of us learn that life is a cycle where death is not an ending merely a new chapter of life. I do not know very much about other religions however, in Christian circles I have learned that as this poem stresses that we are small pieces of a larger puzzle and at the end of our lives we will be resorted in that more perfect image. Therefore, this poem is very much a comment on out culture and the hopeful way it looks not only at death but also life and the importance of making every moment count.
Although our culture mainly believes in and stresses hope and renewal in death it does seem that many in our culture do try to work against this eventually. For example, plastic surgery is one of the most popular and common medical practices that many people undergo. In many cases facelifts and Botox are the number one choice and obviously people undergo such procedures because they want to look younger but sometimes it also seems that many of them are not just fighting off the signs of aging but also death. I guess despite the lofty ideals of our culture and its major religion, many of us harbor fears not so much of death but the unknown nature of it.
However, I do think that despite to fears of the unknown it is comforting to believe that life is constant change and that “nothing / shall be lost”. More than restoration of the body this poem concerns the ultimate renewal of the soul and spirit, when the poem speaks of the “treasured” and the “bronzed horse” remounting the steps, the meaning seems to be that the spirit will reach where it was meant to be and even then it will continue ever on and renew itself.
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I really enjoyed reading your post and I completely agreed with a lot of what you had to say. I too think that the message of the poem was to have hope in what is to come and not to look at death as the end but as a new beginning or just another step in life. I am one of those who use to fear death and whenever I would hear that someone had passed I would not even be able to attend the service because it made me feel like I was closer to my own death. I now know that death is inevitable and while it is sad, I am able to see it as just another stepping stone. I am a Christian so I believe that after life there is either heaven or hell, however I don’t feel that fear that you discussed is related with religions. I am aware that some religions pressure people and make them almost fear death so much so that people just stop trying because they feel there is just no hope. I am blessed that I do not find that kind of pull at my church and I know that even I mess up a million times God will forgive me and I will go to heaven. I liked reading your blog because I think that your thoughts are always very well put together. I liked hearing your point of view so thanks for that.
ReplyDeleteI really liked your perspective on this topic and how you addressed it. I really like the Sheppard idea, that was one I had not seen or considered, and it really made me think more about the poem. I also agree that it seems more and more that cultures do not so much fear death as they fear the unknown, because they do not know what is to come for them, they fear it. I understand this fear completely, but also due to my faith, it does not apply for me in this topic. All the same, that makes it no less scary. I liked how you focused on the positive side of this poem, it really does look at the "importance of making every moment count." When I wrote on this I had considered it to be more of a neutral poem, but I liked your view on it. It seems happy, through the blandness, to be able to express that everything will be reborn, restored. I really enjoyed your blog and your perspective on this topic.
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