Selected Poems of Alexander Pope

The Dying Christian to His Soul [c. 1712]

Alexander Pope (1688-1744)

Vital spark of heav'nly flame!

Quit, O quit this mortal frame:

Trembling, hoping, ling'ring, flying,

O the pain, the bliss of dying!

Cease, fond Nature, cease thy strife,

And let me languish into life.

Hark! they whisper; angels say,

Sister Spirit, come away!

What is this absorbs me quite?

Steals my senses, shuts my sight,

Drowns my spirit, draws my breath?

Tell me, my soul, can this be death?

The world recedes; it disappears!

Heav'n opens my eyes! my ears

With sounds seraphic ring!

Lend, lend your wings! I mount! I fly!

O Grave! where is thy victory?

O Death! where is thy sting?

Questions for Discussion

1. Which of the following devices or techniques reveal the most about the poem's there?

A) punctuation

B) alliteration

C) rhyme scheme

D) metaphor

E) adjectives

2. The question "O Death! where is they sting?" can best be described as

A) harshly rhetorical

B) dubiously questioning

C) gently taunting

D) gravely earnest

E) paradoxical

3. Which of the following is not an active verb?