Work on the theme of Death

Death

Psychoanalysis fascination with death is not uncommon as 

well. In Beyond the Pleasure Principle (1940), Sigmund 

Freud has divided two drives in the humans’ psyche. The first 

one is called the Sexual Drive or Eros and the second one is 

Death Drive or Thanatos (113) [3]. Death Drive is theorized 

by Freud as “the task of causing animate organisms to revert 

to an inanimate state” (113) [3]. This is because “death is a 

direct consequence of reproduction” (Freud 83) [3]. Freud 

indicated that death is the purpose of life and sexual drive is 

only the expression of the will to live

As Death Drive may have been repressed by individuals, 

they are inclined to sublime these desires for death through 

writing. Hence, literature is a medium used by individuals to 

broadcast their supposedly repressed longings for death. The 

fear of death becomes ‘fascinating’, if we could put in such a 

way. Death thus becomes significant to every individual and 

naturally it should be acknowledged as a stage where every

living organism must face as an ending to one’s life story. 

Writing about death may somehow fulfil a fantasy of an 

individual going through the stage of death. And it had made 

them immortal in a way where they do not have to go through 

‘actual’ death. They ponder about death since death is 

mysterious and none that was dead ever get to tell about the 

experience to the livings. This mystery is what invokes 

curiosity among people and hence why death could be a very 

important element in writing a story. Be it in the form of a 

ghost, suicide attempt, or homicide, anything that is 

associated to death intrigues readers. It keeps the readers’ 

interest in a plot

The Death of the Moth compares the insignificant short struggle and life of a moth to the daily struggles of human life. Moth as a symbol of human and it relates to human’s struggle to survive and how human will encounter death as well. When we encounter death, we become the same creature, no matter what our status in the world before. Hence, nobody can escape death, it’s inevitable and unescapable.


Death is frequently imagined as a personified force. In some mythologies, a character known as the Grim Reaper causes the victim's death by coming to collect that person's soul. Other beliefs hold that the Spectre of Death is only a psychopomp, serving to sever the last ties between the soul and the body, and to guide the deceased to the afterlife, without having any control over when or how the victim dies. Death is most often personified in male form,[citation needed] although in certain cultures Death is perceived as female (for instance, Marzanna in Slavic mythology, Dhumavati in Hinduism, or La Catrina in Mexico).



Poetry is greatly influenced by the cultural background and personal experiences of the poets.



The Theme of Death And Time in Emily Dickinson’s Poetry Amitabh Roy Assistant Professor, Department of English Alipurduar Mahila Mahavidyalaya Newtown, Near LoharpoolAlipurduarIndiaAbstractEmily Dickinson was a poet of seclusion and solitariness. She preferred to remain in her own world with her typical choices. She wrote almost 1800 poems, but most of them remained unpublished during her lifetime. The theme of death and time are two most discussed issues in Dickinson’s poetry. Interest about Dickinson still remains in critical world for her choice of words, thematic movement of the poem and expression of innermost feelings in simple language.  Her poems on death and time not only attract the general readers but also they have become issues of critical research throughout the world. The poems of Dickinson are an expression of her own world, lived within the space of her own. The voice of this poet echoes great poets like Shakespeare and Metaphysical poets in her depiction of the themes of time and death.


Death is frequently imagined as a personified force. In some mythologies, a character known as the Grim Reaper causes the victim's death by coming to collect that person's soul. Other beliefs hold that the Spectre of Death is only a psychopomp, serving to sever the last ties between the soul and the body, and to guide the deceased to the afterlife, without having any control over when or how the victim dies. Death is most often personified in male form,[citation needed] although in certain cultures Death is perceived as female (for instance, Marzanna in Slavic mythology, Dhumavati in Hinduism, or La Catrina in Mexico).