To An Athlete Dying Young Essay
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Die Young and Die Happy
In To An Athlete Dying Young, A.E. Housman appears to be congratulating the athlete whose fate has permitted him to die at a young age. The speaker views premature death in a positive light, by calling the dead athlete a smart lad (Barnet, Sylvan, et all, line 8) for dying as a champion and not remaining in the fields where glory does not stay (9). Although the young athlete faced death at an early age, the theme analyses the tragic fate in an optimistic viewpoint by realizing that the young champion s greatness and youth will never fade away or be forgotten since he died living in glory. The poem has three main ideas that help to support the unusual theme, they include: identifying the benefits of dying young; the idea that natural change affects more then just the individual, but also the person s community; and that there is great ironic symbolism in dying a premature death.
The poem begins with the athlete winning a race and being praised by his supportive community. Lines two through four talk about how the people chaired the athlete through the market-place, / Man and boy stood cheering by, / And home we brought you shoulder-high form images that let the reader know that the competitor was
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loved by the townspeople. Suddenly, the next stanza tells the person who is reading the poem that the individual is brought down to his threshold (7) and the town is now still.
The speaker has informed us that the amazing athlete has died, his eyes the shady night has shut, (13) the setting takes place at his funeral. Throughout the poem the speaker finds reasons why the community should not be morning the athlete s death, and sheds light on why his early fate has rewards too.
The first idea that helps to support the theme is that there are many benefits to dying young. One is that the young boy will never have to see his victorious reputation be forgotten. The line Runners whom renown outran (19) conveys the message that fame and glory are only temporary. That ones great fame or reputation will soon fade away. I also like how Housman chose the word outran to capture the idea of the runner being forgotten. Housman could have easily used a word like escaped or left, but instead he used a term that is track related. In the case of this athlete his name died before the man (20) enabling him to still be remembered by his family, friends, and even competitors. Whereas if he were to die at a later more acceptable time of death the number of those attending his funeral would have been much less, compared to if he had been like most athletes who had things that they were once recognized for and then eventually their name fades away to be forgotten. The poem is morning the dismissal of the star athlete in a upbeat light saying that he did not have to see the record cut (14) or hear the silent sounds (15), instead he died before the echoes [could] fade (21). Also lines 11 and 12 capture the idea that his winning reputation is short-lived, that the laurel grows, but then withers quicker than a rose. The Ancient Greeks used laurel to
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crown the victors in various contests; the valuable crown symbolizes life, referring to one s importance as ultimately fading away.
Another aspect that holds together the theme of dying young as a positive fatality is that natural changes people must face occur constantly, which in turn may have results that are positive for both the individual and his or her community. The use of we throughout the poem is a signal of the...
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