Analysis of Fabius Lind to Comrade Death

In the 1930s Aaron Leyeles invented an alter ego for himself. It was a man who, like Leyeles, was mature, intellectual, sensitive and strong. He was keen to both the modern world and his traditional culture. Leyeles named this character, fittingly, Fabius Lind. (Goldsmith) The author translated his experiences here in the tangible world, into the life lead on paper by this powerfully named character. In his poem, Fabius Lind to Comrade Death, Leyeles contemplates the inevitable event of death, and his misgivings about it, in a poetic discourse delivered through Fabius Lind.

The title of this poem gives away the narrative viewpoint. It is told by Fabius Lind in conversation with death, as though it were a person he might be engaging. It is clear that Fabius is a strong, proud man. The poem reads, " I do not know what lime kiln My mettle was formed, But it hates surrender with a great hatred. I was not born to give up." (I: 4-7) Obviously, Fabius is a man of great strength. He fights the battles in life with vigor, and never surrenders to his aggressors, no matter how fierce. He is a man who is used to getting things done the right way, and is ever triumphant in his struggles.

Being a man of such strength, who was "not born to give up", it is difficult for Fabius to conceive of the anything being inevitable, even death. He is a man used to beating odds and fighting. When faced with his own mortality, he becomes upset, and, quite uncharacteristically, wants to run away. The poem states, "When you breathe backward upon me - In the falling away of a friend, In a moment of danger, In a stranger's funeral on a street - I wish I'd been on the other side of the fence, In the not-hearing-not-remembering of your shadows - If only to avoid the duel, in which you always have the upper-hand." (I: 8-14) It seems every time Fabius is forced to look in the eyes of death, he is resentful. He wishes to be elsewhere, anywhere that the thoughts of death could not find him. He doesn't want to think about it, or hear about it. He thinks maybe, if he doesn't have to hear or think about death, it might pass him over.

Line 14 of the first stanza also articulates a second point. Fabius looks at death as a fight, or duel, as Leyeles puts it. Being the strong man that he is, his natural desire is to win every battle. The use of the term "upper hand" paints a clear picture of what Fabius perceives as an unfair fight. How can a man win a battle when he is not given a fair chance at victory? It is clear that the disadvantage Fabius perceives makes him feel weak. It makes him want to run away, as written in line 12. This is the one battle in his life he does not wish to fight.

Going back to the first lines of the first stanza, as they cannot be analyzed properly without the character development of Fabius, the poem begins, "Not so much you yourself, As the road to you, the surrender to you, Dear dictator." Knowing the character of Fabius is crucial to unpacking the message in these lines. It is clear that Fabius is proud man, who fights gallantly, and needs to feel dominant over circumstances as they present themselves. However, this circumstance is very different from the others he has encountered. Using the words "surrender" and "dictator" articulate brilliantly the senses of impotence and helplessness Fabius feels in the face of mortality. He feels he is slowly walking toward the battle that cannot be won. For him, this is unacceptable.

The second stanza begins with, "On my threshold, the date is engraved When you arrive with your holiday greetings." (II: 1-2) Here, it is clear the mood has changed. Fabius is beginning to think of death as a friend, rather than a foe. He speaks of death arriving with its holiday greetings. Holiday greetings are generally exchanged between friends, family and acquaintances, not usually by enemies. His thoughts are beginning to evolve from "Get away from me, or I'll run away," to "If death if my friend, why fear it?" He's beginning to accept his inevitable fate, but he will do this in quite his own way.

In the first line of the second stanza he uses the word "threshold". This word conjures images of the home. A threshold is usually a porch or stoop a person must cross to enter a home. This leads me to believe that Fabius may not fear death itself, as he stated in the opening line, but he fears a death in the home. He doesn't want to grow old, fall ill and suffer. Those things are signs of weakness to him. He does, however, find a solution to his problem.

"But if I will - I can knock first on your door, And you will receive me. No questions, no complaints." (II: 3-5) Here Fabius is basically saying to death, "If we're friends, how about I come to you?" Instead of death taking him from his home as a feeble old man, he wants to come to death on his own accord. He wants to leave this world in a way that would be fitting of such a strong man.

The final lines of the poem read, "You will shake my hand and deck your table With bread and salt. You to me - but me to you too, As with real, close friends, Comrade death." (II: 6-10) Here, Fabius comes to terms with his mortality, as long as it is delivered to him in the manner he has prescribed. He is saying to death, "If I can come to you fittingly, then you are my comrade and I fear you no more." This is a powerful ending to the poem, because the author has allowed the reader to see inside Fabius. The reader can look into his fears, his wishes and his character. He is able to watch as Fabius' reasoning process takes hold, and he is able to see the resolution to Fabius' problem. In a way the reader can be comforted that even a man as strong as Fabius can posses a fear, but he must overcome it, as all must.