A Mother's Lament

A Mother's Lament - meaning Summary

A Mother's Grieving Plea

This short lyric represents a mother's intense grief after the sudden death of her child. The speaker blames fate and cruelty for the loss and pictures her dead son as a broken sapling and a ravished bird to convey vulnerability and dishonour. She repeatedly expresses a wish to die and be reunited with him, addressing Death directly and offering herself. The poem centers on bereavement, the collapse of the mother’s hopes for the future, and the longing for reunion in death. Its plain, direct voice emphasizes emotional immediacy and devotional resignation.