"The Ship of Death" by D.H. Lawrence (poetry reading)

I don't know what D.H. Lawrence was thinking when he wrote this poem, but he died of tuberculosis a few months later.

Bare bodkins are less fun than you might think. Hamlet asks himself, "For who would bear the whips and scorns of time...(and a few other pesky annoyances)...when he himself might his quietus make with a bare bodkin?" Most authorities say that a bodkin was a dagger but it was more likely a big darning needle. I sometimes talk to myself too. Although I make some good points none of them are as sharp as that.

Oblivion is what happens when you die and cross Lethe, hence lethal, which actually means forgetfulness, but it is also the name of a river of Hades in which the memories of your life are washed away so your soul can be reborn. Edna St. Vincent Millay wrote a poem called Lethe, saying it takes away pain and restores beauty. Which would be nice. Anyway, you get the general idea.

There's another river called Styx (in some version Acheron) across which you are conveyed in a boat by Charon. If you don't tip him, he tips you out. That's why Greeks are buried with a coin in their mouths. The waters are poisonous so if you get chucked in you're double-dead.

When you reach the other side you meet Cerberus guarding the gates of Hades. He's a dog with three heads but, don't worry, he only eats live meat so your ass is safe if you're dead.

Remember to keep your hands inside the boat and that flash photography is not permitted.

Then they throw you up in the air, catch you on a sharp stick and barbecue you. Well, it's your own fault, you had every chance to be a nice person when you were alive.

The first picture is from a fresco by Luca Giordano (17th century). It shows Charon the ferryman, the dog Cerberus and assorted dead souls.

"Charon's Boat" is earlier, about 1520, painted by Joachim Patinir who was Flemish.