Post 3 Elegy Karl Werner

Lincoln Is Dead

BY GEORGE MOSES HORTON

He is gone, the strong base of the nation,

    The dove to his covet has fled;

Ye heroes lament his privation,

    For Lincoln is dead.

 

He is gone down, the sun of the Union,

    Like Phoebus, that sets in the west;

The planet of peace and communion,

    Forever has gone to his rest.

 

He is gone down from a world of commotion,

    No equal succeeds in his stead;

His wonders extend with the ocean,

    Whose waves murmur, Lincoln is dead.

 

He is gone and can ne’er be forgotten,

    Whose great deeds eternal shall bloom;

When gold, pearls and diamonds are rotten,

    His deeds will break forth from the tomb.

 

He is gone out of glory to glory,

    A smile with the tear may be shed,

O, then let us tell the sweet story,

    Triumphantly, Lincoln is dead.

Horton, George M. "Lincoln Is Dead." “Words for the Hour”: A New Anthology of American Civil War Poetry. Ed.               Faith Barrett and Cristanne Miller. University of Massachusetts Press, 2005.
           This elegy laments the assassination and passing of Kentucky's own President Abraham Lincoln. The elegy is highly reverential in tone, comparing Lincoln to the sun/sun god "Phoebus" and his death to Phoebus's setting. The poem opens with the traditional element of lament, crying that the "base of the nation" has been lost, and calling heroes to "lament his privation". Clearly, this opening section recognizes Lincoln's loss as a great tragedy, and laments it (it even uses the word directly) as such. As for the second element of elegies, much of the essay is praise and admiration. The poet literally deifies Lincoln, as mentioned earlier. In addition, Abe is likened to a planet of "peace and communion". The poet declares no man remaining alive is Lincoln's equal, and describes how the President's great deeds are both far-spanning and unforgettable. It would be virtually impossible for this poem to give Lincoln more praise. Society has a tendency to obsess over those who carry fame and die, ascribing to them countless positive qualities and forgetting all negative or opposing views they may have felt. When the deceased is a man as great as Lincoln, this tendency is sure to show itself. It certainly does a little in this poem. The elegy wraps up with the third traditional element of elegies: solace and consolation. Lincoln's death is a sad event, but his life was a majestic one. The poet calls the nation to remember Lincoln happily and cherish his feats. They are called to smile with a tear in eye, and tell "Triumphantly ,Lincoln is dead." America was shell-shocked and grieving. This final consolation did not dismiss the melancholy, but rather encouraged fond memories and proud remembrance to accompany it.