Graveyard Blues

Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 2006

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Summary

Background

Poem Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Literary Devices

Themes

Death

In “Graveyard Blues” the main theme, introduced by the title, is death. The poem is set in a graveyard, and most of the poem occupies the space of the funeral, graveyard, and driving home following this event. Death as a theme is central and the driving force of the poem. In Line 6, the speaker names death, stating, “Death stops the body’s work, the soul’s a journeyman” (Line 6). This line indicates that the body is a victim of death; however, the soul may continue. Regardless, death is ever-present. The speaker repeats multiple times throughout the poem the phrase having to do with laying the body down, repeating “we were laying her down,” (Line 1), “we put her down,” (Line 2), and “leaving her where she lay,” (Line 9). Likewise, at the end of the poem the mother’s headstone is described as a pillow for the speaker, who perhaps reposes on their mother’s grave. These references signify a releasing, a letting go, and the action of laying the body down to rest, a prominent symbol representing death.

While the theme of death stands as a backdrop for the entire poem, in the final lines of the poem the speaker walks amongst death when they state in the present tense, “I wander now among names of the dead” (Line 13). The speaker has returned to the graveyard and their mother’s grave, and is walking amongst the dead. This image symbolizes the speaker’s current state; that following their mother’s death, they are always walking now amongst (or with) the dead. The dead, though physically removed, are never entirely forgotten; the speaker still feels death in the form of their mother’s name (her gravestone), which acts as a “stone pillow for [their] head” (Line 14).

Death as a theme is central to “Graveyard Blues.” The poem questions how one continues with life following the death of a close loved one, in this case a parent, and how that death changes the one who experiences it. The poem also seeks to paint a moment of deep grief through memory. “Graveyard Blues” deals with a common life event experienced first-hand by many: The death of a mother and how that loss reverberates through one’s life.

Theme of Time

Time as a theme in “Graveyard Blues” is directly present in Line 12 when the speaker, driving home from the burial, states, “Though we slow down, time’s wheel still rolls” (Line 12). Slowing down to process grief and a significant death, such as the loss of a parent, is a common response. However, as the speaker states in the poem, time does not slow down or accommodate one’s grief. Life continues, despite the loss. Line 12 indicates that though the speaker grieves, they must still find a way to continue, even if the “road’s always full of holes” (Line 11), even if the journey is bumpy and uncomfortable.

Time as a theme and literary device in “Graveyard Blues” occupies an important space. The poem is told in the past tense in which the speaker remembers and relives the memory of burying their mother following her murder. Yet, the final couplet is in the present tense when the speaker states, “I wander now among names of the dead” (Line 13). The reader has no idea how long ago the mother died and was buried, for the poem gives no indication of the passage of time. Instead, time in “Graveyard Blues” becomes stalled. Like grief, time seems not to exist in the normal linear sense. Due to the circular nature of the narrative–discussed elsewhere in this guide—the linear narrative is frustrated, stalled, and struggles to move forward. Therefore, time as a theme clearly indicates that the speaker, too, cannot move forward past their mother’s death. Regardless of how much time has passed–whether it is a day, a year, or ten years–the speaker still “[wanders] among names of the dead” (Line 13); they still circle back to the graveyard where their mother lays, with their “mother’s name, stone pillow for [their] head” (Line 14). The poet juxtaposes the circular timeline of the speaker, whose repetitive act of revisiting the mother’s grave causes her to relive the funeral and her grief, while the mother’s timeline has stopped and is at rest.

Abandonment and Guilt

Abandonment and guilt run as a theme throughout “Graveyard Blues.” Beginning in Line 7 when the speaker states, “The sun came out when I turned to walk away” (Line 7), the theme of the speaker abandoning the mother laying in her grave becomes clear. The depiction of abandonment deepens in Line 8 when the speaker repeats the idea, “Glared down on me as I turned and walked away” (Line 8). By glaring down, the sun acts as an accuser; the speaker feels guilty for turning their back on their dead mother and leaving her in the graveyard. This is explicitly stated in Line 9: “My back to my mother, leaving her where she lay” (Line 9). In “Graveyard Blues” the speaker is the mother’s witness; they are responsible for the mother and her body. Earlier in the poem, the speaker states, “When the preacher called out I held up my hand; / When he called for a witness I raised my hand” (Lines 4-5). Therefore, the speaker feels a responsibility to the mother and to her body.

The theme of abandonment is present in the final couplet. “I wander now among names of the dead” (Line 13), the speaker states. Suddenly, the speaker is the abandoned one, having lost their mother. They are lost and alone among the tombstones of those who have passed. The final line indicates that the speaker must rest on the cold, hard truth of the mother’s death: “My mother’s name, stone pillow for my head” (Line 14). While the speaker must abandon the mother by leaving her in the graveyard, these last lines suggest the speaker is equally abandoned; they are now existing in the world without the comfort and love of a mother.