Heath Ledger And The Poem To Remember Him By

In the midst of the flurry of publicity--mostly distasteful--surrounding Heath Ledger's death, a humble but fitting poem reentered the national consciousness. Larry Williams (the father of Ledger's fiancé Michelle, in case you're celeb trivia-challenged) issued the following statement about his once future son-in-law:

"I think Tennyson got it right in the poem when he described someone as having died at a young age but burning the candles at both ends, and oh what a beautiful flame he made, that was Heath, what a beautiful flame he made and a great talent. My heart goes out to everyone in his family and my family. The saddest thing is his daughter whom he just loved dearly."

Mr. Williams' choice of poem was a good one, but it wasn't by Lord Alfred Tennyson. He was probably remembering First Fig by the American poet Edna St. Vincent Millay:

My candle burns at both ends;

It will not last the night;

But ah, my foes, and oh, my friends--

It gives a lovely light.

It is a simple, perfect poem, and it's fitting that it was Millay, not Tennyson, who wrote it. For while I can't imagine Ledger having much in common with the secluded Victorian, he had a great deal in common with Millay. She was something of a celebrity, with a reputation as a heartthrob and a heartbreaker. She lived a Hollywood life in 1920's Greenwich Village, refusing to settle down, and marrying only when she found a man who would agree to an "open" relationship. Her list of lovers even included a starlet. Edith Wynne Matthison starred in a popular New York production of the play Everyman, wherein she made waves for not being one.

Both Millay and Ledger, thus, broke ground for the gay community: Ledger for his Oscar-nominated portrayal of Ennis Del Mar in Brokeback Mountain, and Millay--who demanded in grade school that her teacher call her "Vincent"--for her openly bisexual lifestyle. Millay would even pen a controversial book, A Few Figs from Thistles, exploring her broader definition of feminine sexuality.

As far as First Fig is concerned, I don't think Mr. Williams' understanding of the poem quite matches Millay's intent. Her title suggests the poem is, at least in part, a reference to her sexuality. Also, Millay's biography tells us that she applied the poem's carpe diem sentiment more liberally than Williams is imagining. The extent of Millay's "illumination" was, in fact, too bright for her. Frequent alcohol and morphine abuse took a toll on her health. She became unstable, suffering a nervous breakdown. Eventually, like Ledger, she was (somewhat mysteriously) found dead.

Millay's body was found lying on a notebook in which she'd written the draft of a poem, the last three lines of which were circled:

I will control myself, or go inside.

I will not flaw perfection with my grief.

Handsome, this day: no matter who has died.

These lines, in how they relate to Ledger, are also poignant. They're a suitable reminder of the (gasp!) humanity of our celebrities and their struggle to cope with the unlovely media lights--the pressure to put forth the appearance of perfection.

Now the media scavengers are circling over Ledger, and the extent to which he "burned at both ends" is the subject of rampant and callous speculation. His mention is almost always tied to illegal drugs and overdose.

It's fitting, I think, that Williams had no knowledge of the writer whose work crystallized his feelings toward his future son--that he was only concerned with her work. He presumably still doesn't know a thing about Millay, her troubled life, or her death. Soon (and thankfully) time will have the same effect on Ledger. He'll be remembered in the public eye more for the roles he played and for the ground he broke than any questionable blips in his biography. And like Millay (or Tennyson) he should become again, to most of us, composed and beautiful.

Comments

[wildflowermaven]

"As far as First Fig is concerned, I don't think Mr. Williams' understanding of the poem quite matches Millay's intent."
You may be right, but like much great poetry, the author writes more than they consciously know, and what so many of us see in the poem that gives solace and understanding is there, I believe.

[DeeperTruth]

Thank you for this... I too have thought Heath's greatest battle was with a kind of perfectionism, that makes is harder to handle the pain of life's imperfections. I think he died primarily of exhaustion and this kind of heartache. I only wish he could have had more time to find again how beautiful life can be. For beautiful he surely was, in heart, soul, and spirit.

[thevineyard]

Thank you for helping me walk through this pain. I have a son in his twenties and, well... Would like to add to the beautiful poetry here, from the end of "Hamlet," spoken by his friend:

"Now cracks a noble heart. Good night sweet prince:
And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest!"

[bakersdozen]

Um, not to nitpick, but Millay, a 20th-century poet, was hardly a "secluded Victorian.­" She lived a very active, unconventional, bohemian life that included extensive travel, until her death in 1950.

[factotem]

Some verses from:
To an Athlete Dying Young - AE Housman
(easily repurposed for an actor...)

The time you won your town the race
We chaired you through the market-place;
Man and boy stood cheering by,
And home we brought you shoulder-high.

To-day, the road all runners come,
Shoulder-high we bring you home,
And set you at your threshold down,
Townsman of a stiller town.

Smart lad, to slip betimes away
From fields where glory does not stay,
And early though the laurel grows
It withers quicker than the rose.

Now you will not swell the rout
Of lads that wore their honours out,
Runners whom renown outran
And the name died before the man.

And round that early-laurelled head
Will flock to gaze the strengthless dead,
And find unwithered on its curls
The garland briefer than a girl's.

[percyveer]

Two of my favourites of Millay are:
"What lips my lips have kissed, and where, and why" with that lovely final line and the sonnet "Hearing your words". As to Heath Ledger, he seemed to be a very sensitive young man who was well aware of the dangers of celebrity, but ultimately, perhaps, unable to deal with the stress. This is not to suggest that this was a suicide, but being depressed, debilitated and unable to sleep could very easily lead to death by accidental overdose.

[TakLoufer]

You can download Millay (and other authors, including Tennyson) works for free from Project Gutenberg here:
http://www.gutenberg.org/browse/authors/m#a70
The open-source site archive.org has readings of Figs From Thistles (including the above-quoted poem "The First Fig") via the non-profit Librivox here:
http://www.archive.org/details/figs_from_thistles_klh_librivox

[Boadicea]

He still is and always will be composed and beautiful to me.

Heath's Ennis will help a whole generation of Americans to understand the agony suffered, for example, by my brother, whose homosexuality, or rather the world's refusal to accept him as he was, drove him to take his own life on a cold January day in 1979.

Thank you, Heath, for that remarkable and courageous gift.

[NyPrincess]

John, that was beautifully written. Thank you so much!

[CeeCee]

May he rest in peace. Despite the garbage publicity coming from the living.

[Chandidevi]

Heath Ledger's life and death is a cautionary tale.

[tenilla]

My thanks to John Lundberg. And to Daniel Day-Lewis for remembering and honoring Ledger's performances in "Monster's Ball" and "Brokeback Mountain" at the SAG awards.

[zoomstuff]

Thank you for a beautiful exposition focused on a fine man's humanity. There's far too much sensationalism out there, far too little attention to heart and character. Thank you.

[nlightenup]

The most fitting and poignant thing I've yet read about Heath Ledger since he died. Thank you. May we all more focus on each other's humanity instead of sensationalist flash.

[epistrophy]

thank u for waking me up in
love & grace...ah­hhh, words!