Writing Focus: Elegies

There are many types of poetry in use that can convey different thoughts and feelings to be used for multiple occasions. For a funeral, an elegy is the go-to for sharing beautifully melancholic memories. This week’s Writing Focus is spotlighting these mournful poems.

What Is an Elegy

An elegy is a sad or melancholic poem that is often (but not always) put to music and sang at a funeral. The subject of an elegy is almost always about the dead, and usually contains lines or phrases that can be attributed to the memory of someone who has recently passed away.

In few occasions, the elegy can be used as a lament to the past, almost a mourning of what has come to pass. The main focus of most elegies is personal reflection and feelings -- in other words, an elegy is often an outpouring of the poet’s feelings at the time of writing.

Tips

With no specific set structure, writing an elegy gives you a lot of freedom to express yourself. Sit down with a piece of paper and just write without thinking of keeping to a certain rhyme scheme or structure and you’ll find that your elegy becomes more heartfelt. If you don’t like anything that you’ve written, you can always go back and edit it out later.

It’s often a good idea to know what or who you're writing about before you sit down. Allow yourself a small ten-minute period of time to just sit and think about what you want to convey -- if you’re writing about a person, you might want to sit and think about all of the personality traits of that person that you admired, or about the little things that you’ll miss about them. Note these down and start writing your poem making reference to these things.

Prompts

Looking to strengthen your elegy writing skills? Check out these prompts to help you out!

1. Think about a friend or family member that has passed away. Write down five main things that you miss about them and write an elegy based around these things.
2. Write an elegy looking back on your childhood years, making reference to the changes that have come about upon growing up and entering the real world.

Elegies can be heartbreakingly difficult to write but once you’ve got everything down on paper, they can be a beautiful tribute to someone or something dear. Even if you don’t write it for anybody else to see, it can sometimes be therapeutic to just get your feelings down on paper!

Special thanks to losing control. and silent hearts. for editing!