Conscientious Objector

“Conscientious Objector” is a free-verse poem of 13 lines. The lines are generally long, but vary in length, and the lines are arranged in four stanzas. Millay’s speaker uses the first-person pronoun “I” throughout the poem. They speak to an audience including themself by also using the plural pronoun “our” (Line 12) in the penultimate (second-to-last) line.

The first line, which is the entire first stanza, introduces the subject of the poem. The speaker anthropomorphizes Death or, in other words, describes death as if he was a person. The speaker refuses to be an agent of death, while at the same time acknowledges that they will die. Dying, the speaker says, “is all that I shall do for Death” (Line 1). While living, they will not work for him.

The second stanza has four long lines. In this stanza, the speaker refers to death using male pronouns: he/him. This builds upon the capitalization of the word Death in the first stanza, which makes it a proper noun (in this case, a name). Death is a male figure who rides a horse. The speaker hears Death in a barn, “leading his horse out of the stall” (Line 2). This builds upon the imagery of death on horseback, locating the horse in a humanmade structure: a barn stall. Death is off to engage in “business”: This word is twice repeated in Line 3. His business is located in Cuba and the Balkans, locations which point to sociopolitical issues on the poet’s mind.

Furthermore, the activities in which the speaker refuses to engage are human-centered activities related to keeping horses. They say, “I will not hold the bridle while he cinches the girth” (Line 4). Holding a bridle, or the strap humans put around a horse’s head, is part of using the horse as transportation. Specifically, the bridle is the strap that controls the horse, while the girth is the strap that holds the saddle in place. Rather than depict death as a spirit connected to his horse by supernatural means, Millay characterizes Death as a human who could use a “leg up” (Line 5) to mount the horse. However, the speaker refuses to give him any help.

The third stanza has three long lines. Here, Millay develops the characterization of Death with descriptions of violence. Death tries to persuade the speaker using the horse and equestrian (horse-related) equipment. Even though death uses a whip (a piece of equestrian equipment) on the speaker, they will not assist him. The speaker says, “I will not tell him which way the fox ran” (Line 6). The speaker first protects animals from death. Then, despite more violence—death putting a hoof on their breast—the speaker protects humans from death. They say, “I will not tell him where the black boy hides in the swamp” (Line 7). The speaker refuses to be an informant for death, emphasizing the phrase “I will not tell him” in both Lines 6 and 7.

At the end of the third stanza, the speaker repeats the first line of the poem and adds onto it. They assert, “I shall die, but that is all that I shall do for death; I am not on his pay-roll” (Line 8). This develops the idea of business and money. Death cannot pay the speaker to help him; the speaker will not accept his employment. This also develops the anthropomorphizing of Death as a human who employs humans using mundane mechanisms like payrolls rather than supernatural power(s).

The final stanza is the longest. It has five lines, most of which are long. The speaker repeats the phrase “I will not tell him” (Line 9) a third time. The circle of people they will not help death find becomes larger and more inclusive. Friends, enemies, and truly anyone at all become part of those the speaker protects. Death continues to be anthropomorphized through needing information and trying to bribe the living—specifically the speaker. Again, the speaker does not refer to Death in supernatural terms, but as a person: “Though he promise me much, I will not map him the route to any man’s door” (Line 10). Death uses promises rather than powers. Furthermore, death needs directions.

In Line 11, the speaker shifts from assertions to a singular question: “Am I a spy in the land of the living, that I should deliver men to Death?” (Line 11) This question is posed to the “you,” or addressee, of the poem—to whom the speaker is speaking. They call this person “Brother” in Line 12, and this can be read on three levels: 1) as a literal sibling, 2) as someone with whom the poet has a close relationship, or 3) as a symbol of living people (a brotherhood of men, referring back to “men” as a stand-in for “humans” in Line 11). The speaker defends their loyalty to the living, including this question to enhance credibility.

In the last two lines, the speaker reassures their brother that they will never work for Death. They live in the same city, and they refuse to give Death “the password and the plans of our city” (Line 12). This continues the imagery of mapping and payrolls—imagery of familiar human measures. One might use the same diction (word choices) in reference to security for a building. This diction casts death in the role of a criminal—a thief or a murderer—rather than a supernatural power.

The final line of the poem is the shortest and uses enjambment (the continuation of one line of poetry onto the next without using end stop punctuation) to create two opposing meanings. The speaker says “never through me / Shall you be overcome” (Lines 12-13). Read together, this complete sentence illustrates how the speaker refuses to help death overcome “you.” However, when read alone, Line 13 echoes Lines 1 and 8: “I shall die.” In this context, “Shall you be overcome” (Line 13) can be interpreted to mean that the “you” of the poem, as well as the “I” of the poem, will both die, or be overcome, even if the speaker does not assist death.