Summary Of The Death Of Marylin Monroe By Sharon Olds

An unknown narrator chronicles how the death of an icon affects the men who transport her body to the ambulance, and presumably to the morgue, in Sharon Olds poem “The Death of Marylin Monroe.” Although the date is not explicitly given in the text, based on the context, the poem begins on Sunday morning, August 5, 1962. Three Los Angeles paramedics are on scene at the residence of Marilyn Monroe, 12305 5th Helena Drive. Her lifeless body is lying on her bed. The speaker refers to the paramedics as “[t]he ambulance men”and Marilyn's body as cold (1). These words are selected to convey the image that the paramedics are only ambulance operators today, Marilyn was well beyond resuscitation when they arrived, and therefore no emergency medical

This technique intentionally delays providing the complete meaning of some lines to create temporary moments of suspense, which is quickly resolved in the following line. In addition to creating and resolving suspense, these unconventional line breaks also serve another purpose, they highlight certain words. For example, line two begins with “body”, which conventionally should have concluded line one, but Olds has reserved that thought until the beginning of line two, where it stands exposed before the comma. Line four begins with “mouth,” placed similarly vulnerable before the comma. In this way, Olds employs enjambment to emphasizes the seductive features for which Marilyn was most

In lines three and four the paramedics try to “close the mouth” and “close the eyes,” in line five they “tied the arms” to her side. Only after the paramedics touch a strand of her platinum tress that was accidentally caught on the stretcher (6-7) does Olds switch away from “the” to a more human reference of “her” when referring to Marilyn. With this word choice, the reader is able to sense the change in the paramedics perspectives as the supernatural goddess Marilyn Monroe transforms into a mere human on the stretcher. Olds continues to depict the transition as she flattens the iconic hour glass figure of Marylin beneath the sheet that covers her dead body (7-8). As the paramedics begin to carry her out of the house, they abruptly remember who it is that they are carrying; they seem to appreciate the significance of the moment, therefore carry her with the reverence due a queen (9). The second stanza begins a new scene. The paramedics go out for a few drinks after work, and they already know they have been changed. As paramedics in Los Angeles, these men have presumably rushed many wounded people to the hospital; they had saved the lives of many, and saw others pass beyond. Normally, a few drinks after work allows them to recompose themselves enough to go home