My Son My Executioner

My Son My Executioner

by Donald Hall

My son, my executioner,
I take you in my arms,
Quiet and small and just astir
And whom my body warms.

Sweet death, small son, our instrument
Of immortality,
Your cries and hunger document
Our bodily decay.

We twenty-five and twenty-two
Who seemed to live forever
Observe enduring life in you
And start to die together.

Meanings of My Son My Executioner

The poem ‘My Son My Executioner’ by Donald Hall is a highly emotive poem about the love of a father for his son. The poem highlights the main idea of the life cycle that continues with the birth and death of life.

Meanings of Stanza -1

My son, my executioner,
I take you in my arms,
Quiet and small and just astir
And whom my body warms.

This poem’s speaker is a father with twenty-five years old son. He addresses his son, saying he is also his killer or executioner. He loves him as he takes him in his arms, observes his quietness and movements, and warms his body. His comment about his son being his executioner conversely demonstrates paternal love for his son, who is going to replace him in this world. The stanza shows the partial main idea of life and death.

 Meanings of Stanza -2

Sweet death, small son, our instrument
Of immortality,
Your cries and hunger document
Our bodily decay.

The speaker continues with his demonstration of paternal love saying although his son is quite small, his arrival seems to him sweet death. The reason is that the son is his instrument for living in this world forever. As the son grows with cries and hunger, he keeps documenting the decay of the body of his parents. This life and death cycle shown in this stanza through the documented history of the father through his son highlights the main idea of life and death.

Meanings of Stanza -3

We twenty-five and twenty-two
Who seemed to live forever
Observe enduring life in you
And start to die together.

The speaker says that he and his wife are quite young and are twenty-five and twenty-two, respectively. They have no idea of how long they will live, for it is generally assumed that they will live forever. Yet, they know that now their son is going to live to replace them. Therefore, they start dying together with each passing day. This stanza completes the normal life cycle, which is the birth of a new life and the death of the old one. In this case, the son is to live, and the parents are to die.

Summary of My Son, My Executioner

  • Popularity of “My Son My Executioner”: Written by an American poet and writer, Donald Hall, “My Son My Executioner” is a metaphorical poem. The poem details the writer’s experiences looking at his infant’s face. It brilliantly taps on the excitement and spiritual bliss of parenting. Its fame, however, lies in its unique representation of the parental love and relationship between the father and the son.
  • “My Son My Executioner”, As a Representative of Love: This poem beautifully depicts the father’s matchless love for his newly born son. It begins when he takes his little bundle of joy in his hands and calls him his executioner. One can feel the father’s excitement and exquisite joy while observing his son’s innocent face. He is so filled with love and happiness that he embraces the child and warms his body. This father-and-son bond makes him realize that being a parent is God’s greatest blessing. As the poem continues, the speaker says that his son is his instrument to get immortality. The child’s cries of hunger make him think about man’s physical decay. The final stanza of the poem is highly symbolic. The poet documents that before his birth, his parent’s love for each other made them believe that they would live forever. However, all their attention shifted to their son after his birth.
  • Major Themes in “My Son My Executioner”: Death, immortality, parents’ love, and happiness are the major themes of the poem. This poem brilliantly captures how a man’s life changes when he welcomes his first child. The speaker of the poem feels delighted while holding his infant in his hands. He compares his earlier life to the present one. Previously, he was a lover who simply desired to live and die with his partner. Now, his son has changed his feeling about life. His arrival has marked the center of the speaker’s life.

Analysis of Literary Devices Used in “My Son My Executioner”

literary devices are powerful instruments that writers use to make their simple ideas unique, absorbing, and thought-provoking. Donald Hall has also used many literary devices in the poem, whose analysis is as follows.

  1. Assonance: Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds in the same line, such as the sound of /e/ in “Sweet death, small son, our instrument” and the sound of /o/ in “And whom my body warms.”
  2. Alliteration: Alliteration is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line in quick succession, such as the sound of /s/ in “Sweet death, small son, our instrument.”
  3. Consonance: Consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line, such as the sound of /r/ in “Your cries and hunger document” and the sound of /m/ in “And whom my body warms.”
  4. Enjambment: It is defined as a thought in verse that does not come to an end at a line break; rather, it rolls over to the next line. For example;

We twenty-five and twenty-two
Who seemed to live forever
Observe enduring life in you
And start to die together.

  1. Hyperbole: Hyperbole is a device used to exaggerate a statement for the sake of emphasis. Hall exaggerates his feelings in the opening lines, such as “My son, my executioner”
  2. Irony: Irony is a figure of speech in which words are used in such a way that their intended meaning is different from the actual meaning of the words. The poem shows situational irony; the poem shows how one’s sentiments, ambitions, and dream changes with time.
  3. Imagery: Imagery is used to make readers perceive things involving their five senses. Donald Hall has used imagery in this poem, such as; “I take you in my arms”, “Sweet death, small son, our instrument” and “Your cries and hunger document.”
  4. Metaphor: It is a figure of speech in which an implied comparison is made between objects different in nature. The poet compares the child with the executioner in the opening line where it is stated as “My son, my executioner.”
  5. Paradox: A paradox is a statement that may seem contradictory but can be true. Hall used this device in the end of the poem when he calls his son the reason for his survival. This idea contradicts the previous idea in which he calls his son an executioner.
  6. Symbolism: Symbolism is using symbols to signify ideas and qualities, giving them symbolic meanings that are different from the literal meanings. The poem shows symbols such as; happiness, life, death, decay, and joy.

Analysis of Poetic Devices Used in “My Son My Executioner”

Poetic and literary devices are the same, but a few are used only in poetry. Here is an analysis of some of the poetic devices used in this poem.

  1. Diction: The poem shows descriptive diction having rhetorical devices, symbolism, and impressive images.
  2. End Rhyme: End rhyme is used to make the stanza melodious. Donald Hall has used end rhyme in this poem such as “two/you”, “arms/warms” and “instrument/document.”
  3. Quatrain: A quatrain is a four-lined stanza borrowed from Persian poetry. Here each stanza is quatrain.
  4. Rhyme Scheme: The poem follows ABCB, ABAC, and ABAC rhyme schemes in the poem.
  5. Stanza: A stanza is a poetic form of some lines. There are three stanzas in this poem with each comprising four verses.

Quotes to be Used

The following lines are useful for parents when talking about their firstborn sons.

My son, my executioner,
I take you in my arms,
Quiet and small and just astir
And whom my body warms.