The Death of Santa Claus

Two female figures show distress in “The Death of Santa Claus”: Mrs. Claus and the speaker’s mother. When Santa Claus has a heart attack in the snow, “Mrs. Claus / tears out of the toy factory / wailing” (Lines 17-19). Later, the speaker’s mother “takes [his] hand, tears / in her throat, the terrible / news rising in her eyes” (Lines 28-30). A wail is a guttural cry of distress or pain, which is echoed by the mother’s “tears / in her throat” (Lines 28-29). This imagery helps to show that Santa’s death as grieved by the child in the imagined figure of Mrs. Claus is echoed by the mother’s empathy. She recognizes that she must confirm for the child that Santa Claus is figuratively dead—that is, that he is not real. Thus, her response equates to that of Mrs. Claus. She mourns the death of Santa just as much, albeit for different reasons.

In the 1939 Robert L. May original poem, the 1949 song recorded by Gene Autrey, and the 1964 Rankin/Bass television special, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer’s glowing red nose serves to guide Santa through the foggy night, insuring his delivery of toys. At Santa’s death in Webb’s poem, however, Rudolph’s nose “blinks like a sad ambulance // light” (Lines 24-25).