Westminster Abbey

Lord Byron

Among those buried at Westminster Abbey, I was excited to see The Right Honourable Lord Byron. Although I’m not a big fan of poetry, I am a big fan of the traditions of the Romantic movement, much of which he inspired. He lived a varied and adventurous life, congruent with his own work. From him we get the wisdom “Truth is stranger than fiction” and “A drop of ink may make a million think.” Byron traveled much of Europe and the Caucasus in his lifetime. He was the subject of many affairs and much scandal and was likely bisexual by our modern understanding. He died due to his physicians bloodletting him while he had a nasty cold. Overall, he seems to have been an intelligent, bold, even impulsive man with a great love for nature and a belligerent sense of humor. Apparently, when he was studying at Trinity college, out of spite for the rules forbidding him keeping a pet dog, he kept his own bear on campus as there was no mention of them in the code. Effective humor. He was very intelligent, but also very in touch with the sensational. Besides from his various affairs, he engaged in feelings of longing and pain in his poetry. This goes without mentioning his great admiration for nature, especially the sea.

Chucky Dickens

Charles Dickens is among my most read and most loved authors. Great Expectations is one of my favorite novels. Like many other European authors of this period, he wrote very satisfying novels about people suddenly changing economic and social status. He was pretty famous during his lifetime, and helped kickstart the Victorian tradition of serialized stories with cliffhanger endings and audience-influenced story beats. I’ve seen play adaptations of A Christmas Carol and Great Expectations, both of which starred Steven Marzolf as Fezziwig and Magwitch respectively. Charles Dickens is so popular that most people associate Victorian life and aesthetic with his work. He’s had a large effect on American life as well because of his tours of the States, performing readings of his work when he was alive. 

Dylan Thomas

Of everyone buried at Westminster Abbey, Dylan Thomas is among those I know the least about even though I’ve heard or read many of his words. He was one of the greatest Welsh poets and died a long, slow death due to many medical complications in New York City. My favorite quote from him is probably “After the first death, there is no other.” I like to think it means something along the lines of “It’s ok to move on because the worst has already happened which means you’ll only be more prepared to deal with it in the future.” Thomas was pretty popular during his time too. He had his work broadcast during the mid-twentieth century. Many people at the time didn’t understand how he died, but it was likely due to a number of factors. One of them was definitely his affinity for alcohol. In fact, it’s very difficult to find one artist or writer from the British Isles who did not have a relationship with alcohol. I guess they didn’t have bowling yet…

Upon further research they did have bowling back then, so they really had no excuse.