Silence Poem Analysis

Edgar Allan Poe’s poem “Silence” portrays how humans can feel about silence; how it both brings people joy and causes them sorrow. In this poem Poe states, “There are some qualities—some incorporate things, [t]hat have a double life, which thus is made [a] type that twin entity which springs [f]rom matter and light, evinced in solid and shade,” (Poe 966). Silence is a powerful thing and affects everyone differently, both when looking at life as a whole and at single moments in life where silence was present. Some enjoy having silence because it helps them concentrate. Some hate silence because their brains fill with dark thoughts when there is no noise to drown them out. Some suffer from illnesses that can both create hatred for silence, …show more content…
In the poem, Poe states “Body and soul. One dwells in lonely places, [n]ewly with grass o’ergrown; some solemn graces, [s]ome human memories and tearful lore,” (966). Poe shows how silence also brings sorrow upon people, although he still feels silence is not something that should be dreaded. A silent place can be a lonely place for those who enjoy noise and human interaction. Many people have stressful lives and silence only gives them time to reflect not so much on life, but of the stress of life. Poe probably felt this way since he wanted to become a famous writing and make a living by writing stories and poems. Although Poe did become fairly famous, he never did make enough money to survive on just the earnings from his writings alone. Poe probably felt stressed about not having much money and not becoming the rich and famous writer he wanted to be. During the times when he was stressed, he may not have seen much solace in silence because it gave him time to concentrate on the bad things in his life. Instead of reflecting on all the good, he may only have been able to reflect on all the bad. Poe, of course, wasn’t the only person to ever feel this way if he did. For many people, silence is dreaded because it can bring forth bad memories. Humans are special in the sense that there are few other species that remember and dwell on the bad things in life as opposed to the good. Poe shows this reality when he talks about “human memories and tearful lore.” For many people, silence can be a good thing and a bad thing; it simply depends on the timing. For a writer, silence is great when working on a piece, but it can also be terrifying when one is only able to reflect back on all the bad things that have happened in one’s life. For college students, silence can be perfect when taking an exam, but can create sorrow when there is no work to be done and they