“On my First Son” is one of many epitaphs, or short poems commemorating a death, written by the English poet Ben Jonson. Jonson was born in London around 1572 and lived until 1637. In that time, he became one of England’s most famous playwrights, as well as a prominent poet and public intellectual.
The epitaph originally came from the words ancient Greeks and Romans inscribed on gravestones to commemorate the dead. Many were just a person's name, but some were more extensive poems. These became popular in the Renaissance, and many poets wrote them. However, although Jonson is borrowing from an established genre, “On my First Son” is an extremely personal poem.
Most epitaphs are addressed to the reader, who is asked to remember the dead. Others might be addressed to the person grieving, as in “On my First Daughter,” also by Jonson, and attempt to console them. Here, however, Jonson speaks to his son, a move that makes the poem feel more personal and intimate. He articulates feelings of grief and despair, and emphasizes that he cannot convince himself not to resent his son’s death, even though he knows it was God’s will.
