Requiem Poem by Robert Louis Stevenson Summary, Notes and Line by Line Explanation in English for Students

Introduction:

The poem “Requiem” was written by Robert Louis Stevenson. The poem talks about someone’s wishes after they pass away. It is a short poem consisting of two stanzas. The poem talks about the speaker’s acceptance of death and returning to home (nature) to live peacefully.

About the Poet:

Robert Louis Stevenson was a Scottish poet, novelist, essayist and travel writer. He loved the writings of William Shakespeare, Sir Walter Scott, John Bunyan. Some of his best known works are Treasure Island, Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, Kidnapped and A Child’s Garden of Verses. 

Form:

The poem “Requiem” by Robert Louis Stevenson is a simple two stanza poem. Each stanza consists of four lines. It is known as quatrain.

Summary:

The poem “Requiem” by Robert Louis Stevenson talks about a man’s wish regarding death. It is a short poem of two stanzas. In the first stanza the speaker of the poem describes a place where he wants to be buried after his wish. The speaker seems to be happy to mention death. In the second stanza the readers get to know that the speaker’s last wish is fulfilled. 

Poem Analysis:

Stanza 1:

Lines 1-4:

Under the wide and starry sky,

    Dig the grave and let me lie.

Glad did I live and gladly die,

    And I laid me down with a will.

The speaker of the poem begins the stanza by describing the place. The place where he stands is wide. From there when he looks up at the sky he could see that the sky is filled with stars. This indicates that the place is far away from the city side. The speaker wishes to be buried in this place where the sky has only few clouds. The speaker says that he lived a happy life and he is happy to end his life. So, he has chosen this place far away from the city as his last wish.

Stanza 2:

Lines 5-8:

This be the verse you grave for me:

    Here he lies where he longed to be;

Home is the sailor, home from sea,

    And the hunter home from the hill.

In the second stanza, the readers get to know that the speaker was buried in the same place he longed for. Now, his grave contains the following three lines. 

“Here he lies where he longed to be;

Home is the sailor, home from sea,

    And the hunter home from the hill.”

So, someone related to the speaker has mentioned about his last wish to lie under the wide sky.

Here, the speaker is being compared to a sailor and hunter. These lines say that the speaker has turned to his home (Probably the place he wished for). He has returned home like a sailor from the sea or the hunter from the hill.