What is the tone in Thanatopsis by William Cullen Bryant?

The tone in Thanatopsis reflects the narrator's attitude toward the topic. Tone is made more intricate because the narrator ceases to speak for himself and begins to speak for Nature ("Comes a still voice--"). There are many mood shifts as the speaker in Thanatopsis shifts and as the discussion shifts. Overall, the ultimate tone would be drawn from the final set-off stanza ("So live, that when thy summons comes to join"), which represents the last tone shift, and would be summed up as soothing, comforting and uplifting, though the major portion is in Nature's voice and is illuminating and factual.

Prior tones, at previous tonal shifts, are casual and informing ("To him who in the love of Nature holds"); sad and eerie ("...and she glides / Into his darker musings,"); illuminating and factual ("Go forth under the open sky,"); somber ("...yet the dead are there:"); sad but factual ("...and what if thou withdraw / In silence..."); hauntingly final ("As the long train / Of ages glide away,"); soothing and uplifting ("So live, that when thy summons comes to join").

Tone is defined as the speaker's or narrator's voice (or tone of voice). The tone establishes the emotional intent of the poet or author and is delivered by the speaker or narrator and produces the emotional quality of the poem or narrative. Tone differs from mood because tone is conveyed through language alone while mood is conveyed through setting, objects, images, details and words.

The tone is surprisingly upbeat for a poem written by someone who has just been given a diagnosis of a disease that will cause death. William Cullen Bryant wrote the poem when he was in his late teens, having just received a mistaken diagnosis of consumption or Tuberculosis (T.B.) This disease caused inflammation and disease of the lungs that were eventually so much consumed that the patient could not breathe.

However, with the typical optimistic tone of the young, Cullen Bryant goes on to find comfort in the thought of his body 'going back to Nature' and becoming one with the trees and earth again. He comforts others in fatal circumstances by reminding readers of the great consolation that is to be found in Nature and his words have a comforting ring to them.Look also for areas in the poem where the tone seems to have the ring of resignation and acceptance to it. It has often been noted that the young have a more risk-taking and philosophical tone of thought towards their future life - and death.

How does "Thanatopsis" express Bryant's understanding of death?

William Cullen Bryant expressed his views about death most clearly in two of his poems: "Thanatopsis" and "To a Waterfowl."  Often associated with the English Romantic poets, Bryant, like them, turned to nature for an understanding of death.  In nature, Bryant saw a way of accepting the inevitability of death.  Let's start with "Thanatopsis," whose title literally means "a view of death." 

This poem begins with praising nature, which has the ability to comfort us with its beauty and vastness:

When thoughts
Of the last bitter hour come like a blight
Over thy spirit . . .
Go forth under the open sky

But in our contemplation of nature, we are also reminded that we will return to Earth and in our death "mix forever with the elements."  The consolation comes from the idea that the earth is a wonderful eternal resting place where we will lie down with all the great people of the past and be surrounded by the rivers, woods, and meadows.  It is the place to which all must eventually go, and because of this fact we will not be alone:

The speechless babe, and the gray-headed man--
Shall one by one be gathered to thy side
By those, who in their turn shall follow them.

We, then, should not be afraid of death but go to our graves as if we are lying down to begin "pleasant dreams."  In this poem, Bryant stresses the fact that becoming one with nature and with all past living things is our solace for death. He does not refer to the afterlife, except obliquely, when he connects dreams and death.  

In "To a Waterfowl," Byrant uses the flight of a bird to explain how we should feel about death.  This poem has a more religious tone that "Thanatopsis."  In the latter poem, Bryant mentions a "Power" that guides the waterfowl to its "summer home, and rest."  As he watches the bird's "certain flight" through "the cold, thin atmosphere" until it disappears in the "abyss of heaven," he applies this journey metaphorically to himself.  As he walks the long way alone, he knows that there is a power that guides him, that 

Will lead my steps aright.

The two poems express similar ideas about death.  Nature is a way of understanding and accepting our own mortality.  In the first, nature becomes our final peaceful resting place; in the second, nature becomes more of a metaphor that teaches us how we should view death. The second has more religious overtones than the first in its mention of a supernatural power that guides both the bird and the speaker to the heavens.

I have posted two links below that should provide more ideas about Bryant's understanding of death.  

What is the "emotion or passion" in William Cullen Bryant's "Thanatopsis"?

The words "emotion" and "passion" do not appear in William Cullen Bryant's poem "Thanatopsis," so I have to assume you are referring to the overall tone and feeling of the poem. This is a poem about death and dying, but it is not particularly depressing or morbid. In fact, one is almost encouraged about the subject after reading the poem. The primary emotion of the poem is comfort in the face of inevitable death.

The opening lines of the poem are a praise of Nature when life is good and death is far away; the speaker then reminds us that it is the same Nature who will embrace us when it is our time to die. Despite the change in tone from "gayer hours," "gladness," and "eloquence of beauty" to "bitter hour," "blight," sad images," "stern agony," and the "breathless darkness" of a "narrow house," Nature's voice is still calm, comforting, and omnipresent.

Death, the speaker says, is part of every man's existence. Once a man has gone to the "narrow house" of his grave, he will become one with all of the natural elements which surround him.

Earth, that nourished thee, shall claim 
Thy growth, to be resolved to earth again, 
And, lost each human trace, surrendering up 
Thine individual being, shalt thou go 
To mix for ever with the elements.

He will become brothers with stones and dirt and tree roots, just as everyone who died before him has done and as everyone who dies after him will do. The speaker reminds us the final resting place below ground is a magnificent place to spend eternity because of all the other people we will join there.

Thou shalt lie down 
With patriarchs of the infant world—with kings, 
The powerful of the earth—the wise, the good, 
Fair forms, and hoary seers of ages past, 
All in one mighty sepulchre.

This "great tomb of man" is, in reality, much greater and grander than anything here on earth, for there are many more people there than those who are currently alive on the planet. There is great comfort in that.

One of the fears people have about death is that no one will mourn them when they are gone. The speaker of the poem addresses that, as well, by reminding us that it does not matter whether anyone weeps or even notices that we are gone. Let the living continue with their lives, and if they are happy, so much the better. No matter what their lives are like, they will all one day join the dead.

All that breathe 
Will share thy destiny. The gay will laugh 
When thou art gone, the solemn brood of care 
Plod on, and each one as before will chase 
His favorite phantom; yet all these shall leave 
Their mirth and their employments, and shall come 
And make their bed with thee. 

While the majority of the poem is a comforting reminder about the inevitability and universality of death, the final lines of the poem are an encouragement about living well until that time comes.

So live, that when thy summons comes to join 
The innumerable caravan, which moves 
To that mysterious realm, where each shall take 
His chamber in the silent halls of death, 
Thou go not, like the quarry-slave at night, 
Scourged to his dungeon, but, sustained and soothed 
By an unfaltering trust, approach thy grave, 
Like one who wraps the drapery of his couch 
About him, and lies down to pleasant dreams.

Death is not something to be feared or scorned, as it is part of the shared human experience. We are not to live like prisoners, enslaved by our fears of death; instead we are to see death as a welcome end to a life well lived. 

What descriptions in "Thanatopsis" by William Cullen Bryant create a mood?

In "Thanatopsis," a meditation on the inevitability of death, Bryant's speaker begins by using antithesis to contrast the joys of living in the natural world to his fear and dread of death. His imagery supports this contrast. The natural world is described as having

a voice of gladness, and a smile
And eloquence of beauty...

How does "Thanatopsis" by William Cullen Bryant still resonate today?

With all the focus on respect for nature and "going green" nowadays, William Cullen Bryant's "Thanatopsis" stands as a poem whose message is extremely relevant today, for it is a most meditative poem that gives consolation for mankind's mortality by expressing man's unity with nature:

To him who in the love of Nature holds/Communion with her visible forms, she speaks/A various language;..../

....Yet not to thine eternal resting place/Shalt thou retire alone, nor couldst thou wish/Couch more magnificent.  Thou shalt lie down/With patriarchs of the infant world--with kings,/The powerful of the earth--the wise, the good,..../All in one mighty sepulcher. The hills/Rock-ribbed and ancient as the sun,--the vales Stretching in pensive quietness between;....

The communion with nature is timeless, for nature soothes as no other force can.  In recent years, there has been a movement begun fostered by Richard Louv, whose book, Last Child in the Woods has as its premise that children are afflicted with nature deficit disorder as he contends that youngsters do not spend enough time outdoors.  And, studies with his groups that he takes on hikes, etc. reveal that these children now make better grades, are happier at home and generally more content in their lives.  Indeed, peope can "lie down to pleasant dreams" when they have been in communion with nature throughout their lives.

Although Thanatopsis was written close to 200 years ago, I think it is a fairly timeless poem.  Therefore, there is no reason that it should not still speak to us today.

The major theme of the poem is death, and how to deal with the fact that we are all mortal.  That is a theme that will never stop being relevant to people (or at least I cannot imagine that it ever will).  We are all faced with death and we all want (or at least I do) to feel as if there is some way to console ourselves when we think of how we will die some day.

Bryant gives us some reasons not to be sad about death.  I'm not sure that they speak to me.  However, the general idea of the poem, and especially the last few lines about not facing death like someone being scourged to a dungeon, definitely resonates with me.

What is the theme of William Cullen Bryant's poem "Thanatopsis"?

This is actually a pretty famous poem by William Bryant, but famous doesn't mean the same as "easy to understand."  I think I can point you in the right direction on the subject, though.  I won't go line-by-line like I usually do when it comes to analysizing a poem (Thanatopsis is just too long to do that with) but I still think I can give you an overview of the poem's "meaning."

The theme of the poem is about death, and the author's opinion is that one should not fear it.  That seems contradictory to the first section of the poem...most of the images used paint death as being pretty unpleasant.  Take a look at these quotes to see what I mean:

What makes William Cullen Bryant's "Thanatopsis" special or important?

Can you help interpret "Thanatopsis" by William Cullen Bryant?

Key to understanding this masterful example of American Romantic poetry is the context of the times. Bryant was writing as part of the Romantic movement - a movement that started as a reaction to widespread industrialisation, the focus on reason and the spread of cities with the subsequent health issues that arose. Romantic poets argued that man had lost his link with nature and declared that men needed to return to nature - being in touch with our environment and being open to what nature can teach us could inspire us and help us find meaning and purpose in our lives.

The speaker of this poem therefore celebrates and muses upon Nature as something that mirrors his happy moods and likewise is able to cure him "with a mild / And healing sympathy" of his darker thoughts, especially focussing on death. The voice of nature declares that when we die, our "beings" become part of Nature as a whole, and so we join all those who have died before us. The speaker therefore tries to persuade us to live our lives in such a way that when we die, we can enter death trusting in death and that it will be not something to be scared of, but instead:

Like one who wraps the dapery of his couch
About him, and lies down to pleasant dreams.

The poem then reinforces the Romantic view that the universe is a living organism by showing how the dead become part of Nature's cycle of rebirth. This comforts the speaker because it emphasises the unity of the living and the dead. Hope this helps!