Sunday Morning Group

Question:

lillian01
lillian01
Student
College - Freshman

How does the speaker in "Sunday Morning" transform Sunday from a day of religious observance for the dead to a different kind of celebration.

One of the famous lines from Stevens, and one of the most enigmatic, appears in "Sunday Morning": "Death is the mother of beauty." Summarize the thinking process by which the speaker in this poem transforms Sunday morning from a day of Christian religious observance for the dead into a very different kind of celebration.

Rate question:

Posted by lillian01 on Friday October 2, 2009 at 2:37 PM and tagged with literature, sunday morning by wallace steven.

Answers:

  1. appletrees
    appletrees Teacher
    College - Junior

    eNotes Editor

    One possible interpretation of this line ("Death is the mother of beauty") is that the occasion of death is an opportunity to remember the positive and pleasurable aspects of the deceased person's life. The imagery of this poem recreates one scene in a number of variations, rearranging words and images to create new meanings and fresh perspectives. In this way, Stevens allows for death to take on added meaning. The sorrow and loss often associated with death may become an occasion for joy or the recollection of beauty. The imagery is melancholy, romantic, and often sensual: this shows the poet's attempt to draw the reader into a more complex reading of the function and experience of attending a memorial service for the dead, namely, that of appreciating the vibrance and beauty of life itself.

    Rate answer:

    Posted by appletrees on Tuesday October 6, 2009 at 10:16 PM