The Potrayal of Death in Philip Larkin's Poetry: Focusing on Aubade, Ambulances and An Arundel Tomb

2. Presented by:
S M Firoz Alam
Exam Roll- 740

3. Introduction
Death - leading constant theme in
Larkin’s poetry.
Larkin was so obsessed with the
concept of death that he has been
often called
“a graveyard poet”

4. Concept of death according to
Larkin
 Death is unpreventable. “All streets in time are visited”
(Ambulances)
“No trick dispels” (Aubade)
 Death- a source of fear and fright in life.
“__ the dread
Of dying, and being dead,
Flashes afresh to hold and horrify.” (Aubade)
 Death- “So permanent and blank and true”. “That lies
just under all we do.” (Ambulances)

5. Concept of death according to
Larkin: Continued
 Death- a perpetual vehicle for our travel to
eternity.
“The sure extinction that we travel to
And shall be lost in always. Not to be here
Not to be anywhere,” (Aubade)
“Brings closer what is left to come.” (Ambulances)
 Death gives chances to think and calculate our life
and its activities.
“__ The good not done, the love not given, time
Torn off unused__” (Aubade)

6. Death and Religion
 Religion is “a special way of being afraid.”
 “Religion used to try” “to pretend we never
die.”
Life after death?
In fact, nothing can ensure a life hereafter.

7. Death and Rationality
 Socrates’ rationality is not enough in facing the
dread of death. According to Sorcates,
“No rational being
Can fear a thing it will not feel.” (Aubade)
 Death has
“ __no sight, no sound,
No touch or taste or smell, nothing to think with,
Nothing to love or link with.” (Aubade)

8. Death and Courage
 We cannot defeat the fear of death with our courage.
“Courage is no good:
It means not scaring others. Being brave
Lets no one off the grave.” (Aubade)
 Only
“realization of it rages out
In furnace-fear when we are caught without
People or drink.”

9. Attributes used by Larkin to Give a
Picture of Death
 “Unresting”;
 “The anesthetic from which
none come round.”
 “the total emptiness”;
 “__stays just on the edge of
 “the sure extinction”;
 “nothing more terrible,
nothing more true.”
vision. A small unfocused
blur, a standing chill.”
 “__ the solving emptiness”

10. Conclusions
 Larkin has got the stereotype feeling of an agnostic(?).
Death- not a gateway to heaven.
 Death is the ultimate truth- our lives and activities are
absurd (Albert Camus).
Myth of Sisyphus?
No. Our love, deeds and
attitudes are immortal.
“Only an attitude remains”
“What will remain of us is
love”
(An Arundel Tomb)