# XVII explained — Poetry

> Chapter companion for Poetry by Ambrose Bierce.

## What happens

A brief epitaph for Jay Gould, describing his death and the mourners who mistook his stillness for sleep.

## Themes in this chapter

### Mortality and Regret

The chapter reflects on death and the illusion of life-like stillness, evoking themes of mortality and the finality of death.

## Character check-ins

### Jay Gould

The deceased subject of the epitaph, lying in state.

## Key lines

> Jay Gould lies here. When he was newly dead He looked so natural that round his bed The people stood, in silence all, to weep. They thought, poor souls! that he did only sleep.

Jay Gould is buried here. Right after his death, he appeared so lifelike that mourners gathered silently around his bed, crying, mistakenly believing he was merely asleep.

_The epitaph emphasizes the deceptive appearance of death and the sorrow of those who mourned him._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_se/chapters/xvii
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_se/chapters