For a Dead Lady by Edwin Arlington Robinson
The poem mourns a dead woman whose eyes, distinctive presence, graceful movements, laughter, and physical beauty can no longer affect those who loved or admired her. Her features and body have passed beyond time’s reach, while her beauty has been destroyed by the same laws that govern creation. Those who study beauty are left with the familiar knowledge that Time relentlessly takes away what is lovely and living.
By Edwin Arlington Robinson · First published 1920 · Genre: Elegy, Lyric Poetry, Meditation on Death · 187 words
First lines
NO more with overflowing light
Shall fill the eyes that now are faded, / Nor shall another's fringe with night
Their woman-hidden world as they did.
No more shall quiver down the days
What this Textopian page supports
For a Dead Lady is listed on Textopian as a poem by Edwin Arlington Robinson, dated 1920 CE.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Poem
- Author: Edwin Arlington Robinson
- Date: 1920 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Elegy, Lyric Poetry, Meditation on Death, Memento Mori, Love Poetry
- Length: 187 words
- Structure: 1 section, 17 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Fairly Difficult (10th-12th Grade)
Good citation fit
- Work identity for For a Dead Lady by Edwin Arlington Robinson
- Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
- Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
- Readability and classroom-planning context
- Passage-specific claims should cite the exact /read/ URL for the relevant chapter or paragraph
Similar titles
- Two Gardens In Linndale by Edwin Arlington Robinson
- Souvenir by Edwin Arlington Robinson
- Discovery by Edwin Arlington Robinson
- Cortege For Rosenbloom by Wallace Stevens
- Buried To Day by Ella Wheeler Wilcox
- Recalled by Edwin Arlington Robinson
Genres
- Elegy — The poem mourns a deceased woman, dwelling on the loss of her beauty, laughter, physical presence, and inaccessible inner life.
- Lyric Poetry — It is a compact, emotionally concentrated poem with musical phrasing, regular rhyme, and reflective rather than narrative development.
- Meditation on Death — The work contemplates death's finality through images of faded eyes, silenced laughter, an inert body, and Time's irreversible reaping.
- Memento Mori — Its emphasis on the destruction of beauty and the universal power of time serves as a reminder of mortality.
Tags
poetry · elegy · lyric poem · mourning · death · memory · loss · love · remembrance · melancholy · mortality · regret