Thomas Gray
Brian Buchter
and Ryan Fox
http://rpo.librar
y.utoronto.ca
Biography

Thomas Gray was born December 26, 1716 at 41 Cornhill London.
He was one of twelve children. He was the only one to survive
childhood out of his brothers and sisters. From 1725 to 1734, Gray
attended Eton college. His mother paid for his education. At
college, he took interest in entomology and botany, along with
poetry classes. In 1742, Gray wrote his most famous poems
including Ode on the Spring, Hymn to Ignorance, and Ode to
Adversity. In 1747 he got married. In 1748 appeared the first three
volume of Dodsley’s collection, which contained Ode on the Spring
and the poem Ode on the Death of my Favorite Cat, Drowned in a
Tub of Goldfishes. Gray died on July 30, 1771. In 1790, a
monument to Grays memory was erected in the Stoke Poges.
Accomplishments

Thomas Gray was a well recognized poet
in England. He was one of the finest poets
from England at the time. When he died a
monument was erected in his honor. He is
known as one of England’s finest poets.
When he was alive he was awarded many
honors for his poetic works.
Historical, literary, and social
context for poem

When Thomas Gray wrote this poem his
best friends cat had just died. Thomas
Gray wrote this poem to try and cheer up
his friend. That is way he made the poem
a comedic poem.
Ode On The Death Of A Favorite Cat Drowned In A
Tub Of Goldfishes

Twas on a lofty vase's side,
Where China's gayest art had dyed. The
azure flow's that blow;
Demurest of the tabby kind,
The pensive Selima, reclined,
Gazed on the lake below.

The hapless Nymph with wonder saw:
A whisker first and then a claw,
With many an ardent wish,
She stretched in vain to reach the prize.
What female heart can gold despise?
What cat's averse to fish?
Her conscious tail her joy declared; The fair
round face, the snowy beard, The velvet of
her paws, Her coat, that with the tortoise
vies, Her ears of jet, and emerald eyes, She
saw: and purred applause.
Presumptuous Maid! with looks intent
Again she stretched, again she bent,
Nor knew the gulf between.
(Malignant Fate sat by, and smiled)
The slippery verge her feet beguiled,
She tumbled headlong in.
Still had she gazed; but 'midst the tide. Two
angel forms were seen to glide, The Genii of
the stream;
Their scaly armor's Tyrian hue
Thro' richest purple to the view
Betrayed a golden gleam.
Eight times emerging from the flood
She mewed to every watery god,
Some speedy aid to send.
No Dolphin came, no Nereid stirred;
Nor cruel Tom, nor Susan heard.
A Favorite has no friend!
The hapless Nymph with wonder saw:
A whisker first and then a claw,
With many an ardent wish,
She stretched in vain to reach the prize.
What female heart can gold despise?
What cat's averse to fish?
From hence, ye Beauties, undeceived,
Know, one false step is ne'er retrieved,
And be with caution bold.
Not all that tempts your wandering eyes
And heedless hearts is lawful prize,
Nor all, that glisters, gold.
Poetic Structure and Rhyme
Scheme

The rhyme scheme of Ode On The
Death Of A Favorite Cat Drowned In A
Tub Of Goldfishes is AABCCB. The
poetic structure of the poem is a Thematic
Structure.
Poem Overview

The poem is meant to be a comedic
outlook on a tragic event. The tragic event
in the poem is the death of the man’s
favorite cat. The comedy is that it
drowned in a tub of goldfishes.
Summary

The cat was just trying to get some food when it
fell in to a tub of goldfishes where it eventually
died. The cat was tempted by the fish swimming
around and finally gave into that temptation.
The cat tried its best to survive but it just
couldn’t stop itself from drowning. The cat even
tried to call to a water god to rescue it but it
never received help.
Form

The form/structure of Ode on the Death
of a Favorite Cat, Drowned in a Tub
of Goldfishes is a Horatian Ode.
Literary Devices

Gray uses word choice, allusions, and repetition
in this poem. He uses allusions when the cat is
praying to the water god for help. He repeats
that the cat is drowning in a tub of goldfishes
many times in this poem. Word choice is the
wording that Gray used in the poem. Allusion is
when the object in the poem sees things that
are not there. Repetition is saying the same
thing over and over to get a point across.
Works Cited



Thomas Gray (1716-1771)."
http://rpo.library.utoronto.ca. 20 Apr. 2004. 21 Feb. 2008
<http://rpo.library.utoronto.ca/poem/885.html>.
"The Thomas Gray Archives." Thomasgray.Org. 03 Dec.
2007. 21 Feb. 2008
<http://www.thomasgray.org/materials/bio.shtml>.
"The Dead Kitty in Ode on the Death of a Favorite Cat
(Favorite)." 123HelpMe.com. 21 Feb 2008
<http://www.123HelpMe.com/view.asp?id=7339>.