A Grammarian’s Funeral- Robert Browning summary

Introduction

Robert Browning’s A Grammarian’s Funeral is a dramatic monologue set in shortly after the renaissance in Europe.  It is a mourning poem sung by a disciple of a noble grammarian, who passed away after spending whole of life in learning new things.  The poem is about the life history of the grammarian as seen by the disciple.  It is in the form of a movement from plains to the hilltop, where they plan to burry the grammarian.  They walk in darkness towards the mountain and during the walk the grammarian’s disciple sketches (says) the biography and the achievements of his master.

Choice of Place/The Right Place

            The grammarian’s disciples decide to bury their master’s corpse in the mountain.  They feel that plains are meant for uncouth people.  They wish their master should be buried in the mountain where there is culture and learning.  They mountain here represents greatness and higher thoughts.  It is a place where the sun shines first and later it passes down.  The grammarian is not an ordinary man to be buried along with the ignorant, illiterates.  Therefore, they decide to bury him in the mountain.  As they walk, they find the rest of the village people fast asleep, in the darkness – under ignorance.

            They say that the life of the ordinary people is like night and the grammarian’s life is like morning.  As climb up they see many peaks and the disciple chooses one peak, which has some light at its top.  The light is not a natural one but it comes from a place there.  They decide to bury the grammarian there.  As they walk, the disciple ask others, who carry the grammarian, to lift their heads and chest up, so that the dead grammarian gets due respect before the onlookers.

The Grammarian’s Young Age

            The grammarian spent all his young age reading and gaining knowledge.  He was interested in knowing the mystery of world and human life.  During his young age, he kept reading voraciously so that soon he became old.  On becoming old, he did not get lazy and unenergetic, but he kept reading his books and understanding life.  If it had been other men, they would have said no to their studies, but the grammarian kept reading books.  Even in his old age, he wanted to know the views of poets and other great scholars.

           

As he grew old, his eyes lost its power and his body became very weak.  If it had been an ordinary man, then he would have stopped reading and started enjoying life but the grammarian did not enjoy life.  He believed in enjoying life after death (the eternal life).  He kept reading books, without a stop.  After reading books, he wished to read the commentaries and criticism of some books.  He wished to read until the last minute of his life.

The grammarian saw life not as parts but as a whole.  He believed that life is of parts that give rise to whole.  To explain this, the poet uses the image of constructing a building.  He says that before building a house one has to draw its parts and then only they have to build.  Similarly, the grammarian believed that to live a happy one must strive (work) hard at the early stage or young age.  The grammarian before beginning to live his life planned for his life.  The grammarian fully believed in God and thereby he planned for his happy life, after death.  Ordinary men would say that time keeps moving and they would start enjoying their life but the grammarian believed in life after death and in the concept that soul has no end.  He also says that human beings should prepare for their life after death.  The present life and enjoyment of life is meant for lower animals and not for human beings.  He says that only animals believe in present and enjoying life.

His belief in God and life after death made him study book after book, without getting tired.  As he grew older and older, his eyes became dim like a lead.  His physic became weaker and weaker.  His disciples, along with the diseases, would advice him not to keep reading books.  However, the grammarian kept reading with more enthusiasm and energy.  One could not separate learning from the grammarian.  Ordinary man drinks water when he is thirsty.  The grammarian drinks knowledge, like a dragon.  His thirst is said as a mighty thirst, a bigger thirst, a noble thirst.

Like ordinary human beings, the grammarian did not mind about cheap and petty ambitions.  He was not narrow in his thoughts.  He did have small ambitions.  He did not draw a small circle around him.  Only ordinary men would believe in short gains and profits and they would lose the bargain during the Judgment day.  Ordinary people aim for a small profit and they achieve it in their life, but they are miserable failures in their eternal life.  The grammarian looked for life beyond death.  His ambitions are larger than life size.  He aimed at a million.  During his life on earth, he did not fulfill one percent of his ambition, but still he was happy and sure of a better life after death.  For him, death is a preparation of life.  He solely believed upon God.

The grammarian was interested in learning even in his deathbed.  Though his voice was feeble and incoherent he explained his disciples the parts of speech and the correct usage of Greek words like hoti (because), oun (therefore) and right usage of the prefix ‘De-’.  He explained the rules of Greek grammar, even when his body was partly paralyzed.

As they come and reach the hilltop, they choose a place filled with lots of birds like swallows and curfews.  The disciple says that the grammarian flew in the sky like the birds.  The disciple once again says that common people should live in the plains and this place is meant for the grammarian.  He describes the qualities of the highest peak.  He considers it as the place where the sun rises, the stars shoot into the sky, the lightning loosens itself, the clouds form and the birds haunt.  It is a place of grandness that suits the grand man, the grammarian.  Therefore, they all decide to stop (halt) and bury the grammarian there.

Conclusion

            As the funeral procession proceeds, we could see the disciple giving instructions to the persons who come along with him.  He gives them signals about the winding path and the way they should walk to avoid inconveniences.  On the whole, the poem is yet another best dramatic monologue of Robert Browning, expressing his philosophy of life and skill of describing nature at its best.