My Funeral

Hikmet, Nazim

Primary Category: Literature / Poetry

Genre: Poem

Annotated by:
Kohn, Martin
  • Date of entry: Dec-27-2000

Summary

My Funeral is a touchingly funny and poignant salute to the beautiful ordinariness of life and a wish for it to go on that way. The speaker of the poem wonders what the scene will be as his body is removed from his apartment. "Maybe there will be sun knee-deep in the yard" or perhaps "a pigeon might drop something on my forehead: it's good luck" But regardless of circumstances, the speaker tells his neighbors: "In this yard I was happier than you'll ever know / Neighbors, I wish you all long lives." (p.239)

Commentary

This poem was written a few months before Hikmet's death in June, 1963. I plan to use it with another of his poems, On Living, which has also been annotated in this database.

Miscellaneous

Translated from the Turkish by Randy Blasing & Mutlu Konuk.

Primary Source

Poems of Nazim Hikmet

Publisher

Persea

Place Published

New York

Edition

1994