Orthodox tradition refer to the experience of Pur-
gatory as Hades.
The concept of Purgatory is also found in other
religions. Both Judaism and some early Christian
writings speak ofGehenna, a place where the souls
of evil people go after death. This may be tempo-
rary, to achieve purification of the soul before it is
released, or a permanent punishment. Islam teaches
that Hell, called in ArabicJahannam,canbea
temporary or permanent state, depending on the
nature of the sin committed.
Critical Overview.
While Mitchell has a high critical reputation as a
poet and has won many prizes, her work is not
widely reviewed. This is especially true of the vol-
ume in which ‘‘The Dead’’ appears,The Water
Inside the Water, as it was Mitchell’s first collec-
tion and was published in 1983, before her poetry
gained broader critical recognition.
The 1994 HarperPerennial reprint of the col-
lection contains two reviews on the back cover.
Mitchell’s fellow poet Stanley Kunitz is quoted as
saying the collection is ‘‘extraordinary’’ for its
‘‘depth, range, and brilliance.’’ He added that it
is ‘‘a book of memory and nightmare, changes and
epiphanies’’ and he noted that Mitchell ‘‘has a
heightened sense of reality, a fantastic eye, and a
beautifully restless intelligence.’’
The poet Richard Eberhart noted the ability
of Mitchell’s poems to fuse a ‘‘hard reality’’ with a
‘‘spirit of transformation’’ that ‘‘tends to make
everything become something else.’’ Eberhart com-
mented that this creates ‘‘an astonishment of mys-
teries enriching our consciousness,’’ adding that
‘‘Herpoetryhasaspecialquality of excellence, a
particular pith, gifts of evocative powers.’’
Robin Becker, in a review of Mitchell’s later
collection, Erotikon (2000), noted Mitchell’s
employment of ‘‘Greek myth and classical allu-
sions,’’ a comment that is relevant to ‘‘The Dead.’’
Becker also noted Mitchell’s ‘‘non-linear’’ style and
‘‘lyric simplicity and delicacy.’’
AreviewofRapture(1992) commented on
Mitchell’s ability to build her poems ‘‘in informal
and colloquial blocks of language’’ (this is alsoOld letters(Image copyright Vladimir Wrangel, 2009. Used under license from Shutterstock.com)
The Dead