thanatopsis

== English == === Etymology === From Ancient Greek θάνατος (thánatos, “death”) + ὄψις (ópsis, “seeing”), via the poem "Thanatopsis" by William Cullen Bryant. Although a surface analysis of thanato- +‎ -opsis readily suggests itself and might invite a semantic expectation of deathliness, Bryant's sense of the word corresponds to "the seeing of death" rather than "the appearance/likeness of death". === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /θænəˈtɒpsɪs/ === Noun === thanatopsis (plural thanatopses) Contemplation of death. ==== Related terms ==== thanatosis; for more, see thanato- (and its derivatives)