On My First Son: A Critical Analysis - Essay Example

The poem “On My First Son” is about Jonson's feelings on the death of his eldest son who died at the age of seven (Brackett 302).

In the poem he expresses his emotions and grief for his son, he says goodbye to his son and wishes that he had never been a father to him because of the grief he feels, but he also mentions and suggests that he should also be feeling happy because his son has escaped the worries of the world and he lives now in heaven.

His expression of sorrow and grief is evident from the usage of his words in the poem, he dedicates his poem to his son and considers it as a farewell to his son, he says:

“Farewell, thou child of my right hand, and joy;
    my sin was too much hope of thee, lov’d boy.
Seven years thou wert lent to me, and I thee pay,” (Stockwell 62)

If talked about the structure of this poem, it can be said that the poem is clearly a meditation of his thought; it is an elegy, a poem written on the death of his son. It expresses sorrow about the death of his loved one. About the structure of his poem, it can be said that it is written in heroic couplets with rhyming iambic pentameters, it is developed in rhyming couplets with each line in pentameters.  It is important to mention that despite the strong adherence, the poem conveys strong emotions and feelings.

Jonson use of language and imagery in this poem is also unique; he creates a metaphor of his son having been lent to him by God so that he pays him back on the named day. The image he represents in the poem is powerful; he considers the seven years he spent with his son as a gift from his god.  Death is represented as a state that a man should envy because Jonson thinks that man is safe from the misery of the world (Hager 224). 

Thus, to conclude it can be said that Jonson had used a strong portrayal of imagery and metaphors in this poem which connects with his strong representation of feelings and emotions. He rejoices the feeling that is developed after his son’s death because according to him it is the state where a man is away from worldly worries and care.