The poem is a lamentation of the deaths of three young people: the Lady's brother and sister, and her one-year-old child Avis. It expresses sorrow and grief at their untimely passing, using imagery and metaphor to convey the depth of the family's loss. The speaker reflects on the fragility of life and the inevitability of death, while also acknowledging the pain and suffering that it brings to those left behind.
By Phillis Wheatley · First published 1773 · Genre: Elegy, Poetry, Religious