We are reading and discussing The Spoon River Anthology by Edgar Lee Masters. This series of epitaphs contains many themes; the most common of which is life and death. Read the epitaph of Edith Conant, which is on page 140 of our books. What do you feel in Conant's message as to the relationship between the living and the dead? Which lines of her epitaph best convey this theme?
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The message of this poem is that memories last forever, even if they are not remembered. Masters personifies the memories as people who keep the memories, but only the people who keep the memories know the memories. No living person remembers them. All of Edith’s relatives and friends forgot her, her voice, and even her looks. Masters portrays life and death as opposites. If a person is popular and beautiful in one life, that person may not even be remembered when he or she passes onto the next. "And all things change" (line 4). Memories are not absolute; there is no human, animal, or object that is guaranteed a spot in history or even in his, her, or its friend’s memories. One day even the most cherished memories of this time may fade, forgotten throughout the ages. Some memories and stories may last longer than others, but in the end all things die. When these memories die, only the memories will remember them. IH
note: had to make and edit on first one.
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