The poem "Be music, night" by Kenneth Patchen was written to his teenage sister who passed away in a tragic car accident. The speaker addresses the spirits, nature and the universe to help him overcome his grief: "night, sea, sky, earth, God". The poem itself symbolizes his prayers for his dear sister that her soul would rest in peace and his love for her would never subside. The poem begins with a dreamy, gentle line that is also the title of the poem, "Be music, night", which implies the the attitude, the tone and the sound of the speaker when you combine the two words "music, night". The title suggests a subtle, peaceful poem that is like a leisure, smooth lullaby. In the first stanza, the speaker wishes the night could turn into a gentle…show more content… The term "breathing spires" (13) has the root "spire", meaning breathe or breath life into from the Latin word "spirare, aspire", or to breathe life upon something - to have hope. We can also understand the term this way: to breathe or blow into another, in other words, to influence or animate with an idea or purpose. The combination of alliteration and consonance the sound "th" and the long vowel sounds, such as "earth, thee, breathing", helps portray a calm, peaceful…show more content… The line "that her living may find its weather" (15) implies the speaker's hope of his sister's soul, under God's protection, would be like the weather on earth, whether it's sunny or rainy, happy or sad. The image of "the souls of ancient bells" (16) portrays a funeral where the body of the speaker's sister lies cold and silently. Surrounding her is the sound of the bells and the heavenly atmosphere in the church. Lastly, the speaker hopes that by hearing the bell sounds, it would lead her soul to "Thy wondrous house", to Heaven, to God. Once again, the combination of alliteration and consonance of the sound "s"and "th" is repeated, to connects the poem together to form a smooth, fluent tone. The poem is written in rhythmic stanzas with no rhyme scheme and shifts. This is important because the poem must flow as smoothly as a lullaby. Another thing is the poet wants to keep a clam, light-hearted, peaceful and dreamy tone throughout the poem. The poem sets place in a religious setting - the church. Therefore, the prayers for the death are sad and melancholy. The poet writes this poem as a prayer to his sister, therefore, must be read in a gentle, accepting, and somewhat sad
