"Suicide Note" Analysis by Mahalia

Death

           

Every day people in the world die from car crashes, natural causes, cancer or simply fighting for their country. No one understands why some people get longer lives than others or why bad things happen to good people but the world is still a mystery. In the poem it talks about life by using nature and happy things like rainbows, April sun and fresh dirt to describe life. “I am fresh turned dirt / in the April sun” (17-18).  When I think about this seen it makes me smile because I like spring day and they are always full of life blooming around. When the speaker mentions dirt it makes me think of the element earth; which stands for growth and renewal of life.  Life is not just a heart beat but also the flow of a river or the sound of thunder roaring in the night sky. The poem “Suicide Note” by Mark Gibbons describes death.

This poem stands for death because when the speaker starts naming off people that have died and one of those people committed suicide themselves. “I am Christ, Hitler…” (28-31). The speaker may have put Christ in the poem because he sacrificed his life for others’ sins and he died for things he believed in. The speaker may also have mentioned Christ in the poem to reassure that he or she was going to die for the sins they committed and not for nothing. The speaker put Hitler into the poem to show that Hitler killed himself because of his sin and maybe to show that even a powerful man can kill himself and not just be remembered because he killed himself. Both of these people are well known for different reason and for the speaker to get recognized he has to die first. “I am / changing my name to plastic, cold as / my blood, clear as a storm” (35-37).  This quote means that the writer is going to change his name to something everyone knows and that’s plastic. Plastic is something that people take for advantage and the speaker could feel like people take him for advantage, so that is why he or she want to die. Plastic is also something people throw away like yesterday’s garbage. He or she’s blood is cold because he is scared for what’s next after he dies; the speaker feels all alone and has given up faith. The speaker feels lifeless and the only option is to commit suicide and he final makes his decision at the end of the poem. When the speaker says “clear as a storm” he or she is referring to his thoughts have cleared and know the speaker knows death is the right choices.

Another reason this poem represents death is because the speaker also uses nature to stand for death not just life. “I am cottonwood / bark floating in an eddy” (5-6). This phrase may stand for the speaker who is all alone and by saying he is bark floating he or she mean that they are floating by in life and when he sinks that will be the end of life. By putting this phrase in the poem he or she is stating that they can’t float forever and the speaker does not want to live any longer. The speaker also said “I am comets, the moon, my father’s ash” (10-11). The comets stand for the speaker wanting to leave this earth and that every comet dies out; he or she is a comet that is about to die. The moon stands for the mark he or she is going to leave behind on his or her loved ones. The moon is always there reminding people that there is another whole universe out there. The speaker is the moon reminding people that there is another life beside the one he or she has now. The speaker’s father is going to get his or her ashes once they die.

In the beginning of the poem up until the middle of the poem the speaker is confused about life and death and what choices he or she has. In the middle of the poem the speaker says “…..whispering voices that hiss—there is no forgiveness” (22-24).  Up to this point in the poem the speaker was having doubts about what he was going to do next. Whispering voices that hiss at the speaker stand for his conscience and the things that he is telling himself have convinced him that death is the solution. When the speaker states there is no forgiveness he or she knows he does not deserve forgiveness by god or anyone and he know what he is doing is wrong but he has made up his choice. He or she also wants people to know when they here voices it is him. The speaker wants people to fear him especially when he or she states “I am the reason /  you fear the dark” (18-19) The speaker wants people to know even if he or she is dead there soul will live on because people will think of the speaker when they are scared.

 The poem “Suicide Note” by Mark Gibbons describes that the speaker is talking about death. The speaker implied multiple times that this poem was about death. The speaker puts people in the poem that died by sacrificing them self and by taking their own life because the speaker intends to die. Hitler and Christ are still talked about today so maybe the speaker may think that taking his own life he will be remembered for ever. The speaker also uses nature to incorporate that he or she is not afraid to die and they would rather die on their own terms then natures terms. I also think committing suicide is deifying nature and the speaker is trying to make a point that any natural disaster that happens could not kill him or her. The speaker also wants to be feared by others because he does not want people to forget him, so when it dark he wants people to know he is always there. The title “Suicide Note” is another place the speaker implies that this poem means/stands for death.