Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Letters to a Young Poet, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Solitude and Difficulty
Art, Life, and Uncertainty
Patience and Self-Assurance
Mentorship and Guidance
Summary
Analysis
Stating that there’s nothing he can say to help Kappus, Rilke notes that the young poet has experienced many sad things in life, all of which have passed. But Kappus suggested in his previous letter that letting his sadness fade is difficult in and of itself. Rilke, however, wonders if sadness has fundamentally changed Kappus—his sorrow hasn’t just left, but has altered the way Kappus moves through the world. If humans were able to see the future and recognize how sadness has changed them for the better, Rilke thinks people would actively embrace sorrow. After all, sorrow brings on transition and change.
It's unclear why Kappus is sad, but that’s not the most important thing about what Rilke says in this letter. Rather, what’s important is Rilke’s suggestion that sadness fundamentally alters people even after it passes. Rilke doesn’t see this alteration as a bad thing, though. Rather, he sees it as yet another example of how difficulty often leads to growth and positive change. Instead of turning away from sadness, then, Kappus should learn to appreciate it in its own right.
Themes
Sorrow is difficult and frightening because it plunges people into moments of transition. In the depths of sadness, people sense that something has changed in their lives. And embracing this change is scary, since nobody knows where their sadness might take them or how they might change because of it—they therefore have to face the “inexplicable” nature of life, which is daunting. But Kappus should embrace uncertainty. He shouldn’t be afraid of sadness but should instead trust that he’ll grow during periods of sorrow.
When people are sad, it’s often because something has changed in their lives. Perhaps a loved one has died. Or, less dramatically, maybe they’ve just lost their sense of joy. Either way, something has happened to destabilize their happiness, so sadness actually becomes a moment of transition. Because Rilke believes in the value of difficulty and uncertainty, though, he thinks that this transition is something that ought to be welcomed. Although it’s scary to embrace the idea of transitioning into a new way of life (however small the change might be), Rilke recognizes that these are the moments in which people grow and become more emotionally alive, which is why he tells Kappus not to deny the powerful and transformative impact of his own sorrow.
Themes
The young poet shouldn’t turn away from pain or “melancholy,” since it's impossible to know how, exactly, these feelings are currently impacting him as a person. What’s more, he should remember that sickness is—though unpleasant—an important process; it heals the body. Rilke believes that sadness works the same way. Before signing off his letter, Rilke warns Kappus against assuming that Rilke himself doesn’t struggle with the same issues. The only reason he can offer advice alongside some comforting words is that he, too, knows what it’s like to experience deep sadness.
Rilke makes an informative comparison between emotional pain and physical sickness to reinforce his idea that difficulty is worth embracing. It's obviously unpleasant to be sick, but sickness is how the body cures itself. The point of a fever, for instance, is to kill off the virus or bacteria threatening the body. Experiencing something like sadness is similar to being sick; it’s a good way of building personal growth. Consequently, Kappus shouldn’t run from sorrow, nor should he assume that Rilke himself doesn’t struggle with it—just like sickness, sadness is something that plagues everyone.
Themes
