“Crossing the Bar”

“Crossing the Bar" by Alfred, Lord Tennyson, uses metaphor to talk about death. He uses a sand bar to describe the barrier between life and death. He is living life, and hopes to avoid death. He says "And may there be no moaning of the bar, When I put out to sea." This says that while he is living his daily life, he hopes not to die. While death is on his mind, he does not seem to fear it. He doesn't want any one to fear for his safety, though he knows he may die. At the end of the poem, he seems to take a christian stance on death. He hopes to meet his pilot, who represents God. The story uses the metaphor of a sand bar to represent the wall between life and death. It uses a real life scenario to show the intricacies of life and death. I like the use of metaphors to more easily explain complicated subjects.