An Intricate Circle: The Pardon

Life and death are symbiotic entities. Each relies on the other for its existence. In the poem “The Pardon” by Richard Wilbur, sensory description illustrates how both life and death are interconnected. In the poem, a series of events render a man to mourning the loss of his dog after leading a lifetime in the absence of love. We are introduced to the speaker as a young boy traumatized by the death of his dog. The death leads him to pursue a life that lacks both love and the recognition of death. We are later introduced to the speaker as an older man accepting his losses. He has nightmares of the dog and it becomes evident that the sole purpose of the dog's returning is to haunt the man for the mistake that he made. While the nightmare frightens the man, he also finds that it brings him understanding. Wilbur’s poem highlights the fact finds that appreciating death is equally as important as appreciating life.

Like any child, the one in Wilbur’s poem is confused and shocked by the death of his dog. Wilbur chooses phrases that reveal a negative tone at the beginning of the poem. The clear imagery of the "thick of summer" and "a jungle of grass and honeysuckle-vine" pulls the reader into the scene, and we start to feel suspicious of the dog. The boy in the poem cannot bring himself near the "twine of a heavy odor" or the "flies' intolerable buzz.” Wilbur, in his dramatic detail, clearly illustrates the importance of death, even though the boy doesn’t understand. The boy is only allowing exposure to the sweet scent of the honeysuckle, which symbolizes his reluctance to accept death. Losing his dog is something unfamiliar and uncomfortable. According to a “Paris Review” interview, Wilbur claims that this poem serves to remind us of the complexities of life and death. “Sometimes very strong feelings don't get written up because the interesting metaphor or dramatic situation doesn't suggest itself. So much of one's life goes unused” (Ellison et al.). “The Pardon” works to show us the mechanics of these “strong feelings.”

The boy in the poem is afraid. His fear culminates in his inability to find love not only in life, but in death as well. Because he knew nothing of death until this point in his life, he grieved the dog until he essentially stopped feeling any emotion. He chose to avoid dealing with the cruelty of death. The man in “The Pardon” then begins to live his life stoically, never stopping for love or enjoyment.

In the next nightmare, we find the dog again as an attribute of death. Yet he is also a symbol of life, because the boy is now a man, and he is accepting misfortune instead of pushing it away. In the vision, there is the look of death growing in the dog’s eyes; "death was breeding in his lively eyes.” This image conveys that life and death are interconnected. The dog exemplifies both life and death in the poem. He returns in the form of a nightmare to express this importance to the narrator.

Death is an unavoidable event, and to a young boy it is scary and painful. However, it is part of life, part of this “mortal coil.” Although everything living will die at some point, that does not mean that the deceased should be forgotten. In our memory and in our love for the deceased, we often find solace in coping with the loss. A fear of death can create a life lacking love, which then inhibits loving, as seen in “The Pardon.”

The narrator can eventually love and care more freely. He can "mourn the dead." More importantly, he can love past the event of death, knowing that it is only the natural course of all individuals. Wilbur shows us that in the interconnectedness of life and death, important lessons can be learned.

Overall, “The Pardon” exemplifies a conversion from naivety to maturity over the course of many years. The poem allows us to recognize that death is not an end. The shock of death impacted the young boy to the point of indifference. Until his nightmare, the narrator denied the existence of death. His experience, however, exposed him to reality and changed his views forever. The knowledge that life can be found within death causes the man to change. He was once unable to "forgive the sad or strange in beast or man," yet now he welcomes "death's pardon." This poem follows the evolution of a naïve young boy into a loving man. Whether the man can be redeemed from all that he lost in his life remains a mystery.

Work Cited

Ellison, H., et al. “Richard Wilbur, the Art of Poetry No. 22.” The Paris Review, 1977,https://www.theparisreview.org/interviews/3509/richard-wilbur-the-art-of-poetry-no-22-richard-wilbur