Larkin’s “An Arundel Tomb” | Reason and Meaning

Pictured above is the 14th-century tomb effigy in Chichester Cathedral that impressed Philip Larkin’s poem “An Arundel Tomb.” It’s the tomb of Richard FitzAlan, tenth Earl of Arundel (1306-1376), and his spouse, Eleanor of Lancaster, Countess of Arundel (1311- 1372) Discover how Richard’s glove has been eliminated so he can grasp the flesh of Eleanor’s hand. The poem ends with these evocative strains:

Time has transfigured them into
Untruth. The stone constancy
They hardly meant has come to be
Their closing blazon, and to show
Our almost-instinct nearly true:
What’s going to survive of us is love.

Philip Larkin is mostly thought of one of many biggest English-language poets of the final century. Nevertheless the final line above is uncharacteristic of Larkin’s usually downbeat poetry.

So what does the road “What’s going to survive us is love” imply? Larkin could also be implying that the lovers are joined in loss of life as they have been in life, no less than till the ravages of time lastly erase their stone figures. Possibly the joined fingers have been the sculptor’s concept and don’t replicate an actual love in any respect—maybe that’s the that means of the road “transfigured them into untruth.” Larkin himself mentioned the tomb deeply affected him, however he additionally scribbled on the backside of 1 draft: “love isn’t stronger than loss of life simply because two statues maintain fingers for 600 years.” But the poem doesn’t say that “love is stronger than loss of life.” It says love survives us, and to outlive one thing doesn’t make you stronger than it.