Christina Rossetti's “Remember” is a poem about grief, told not from the perspective of a mourner but

rather the person who's to be mourned. In this sonnet, the speaker begs a loved one to remember her
after her death—but also not to feel guilty if he forgets her, so long as she's made some permanent
mark on his life and he remains happy. The speaker's poignant realism (in the sense of accepting that
her beloved may in fact forget about her) engages both with the finality of death and the persistence of
love. Rosetti wrote the poem in 1849 at the age of 19, though it was first published in 1862 in her
collection Goblin Market and Other Poems.

“Remember” Summary
Remember me when I'm no longer around, having gone far away into death's silent land; when you
can't hold my hand anymore, and when I can no longer make as if I'm leaving, and then turn back and
stay after all. Remember me when you can no longer tell me about all your future plans for us. Just
remember me; you understand that it'll be too late then to give me advice or to pray for me. But if you
do forget me for a while, and then remember me again later, don't feel bad. Because as long as darkness
and rot don't destroy the traces of my thoughts in you, it'll much better for you to forget about me and
be happy than to remember me and be sad.