The poem is about the skeletons who perform dance macabre at night. When their shrouds are opened in the graveyard, warder picks up one of them and skeleton does not return to the grave. It starts chasing the warder to the bell tower. Skeleton tries to kill the warder and at this moment god saves him when the skeleton breaks down into pieces. The story of the poem allegorically describes why it is not recommended to interfere with the supernatural activities.
In Totentanz, "the skeleton corners the unfortunate Türmer, who quivers in cowardice, and is about to deliver a deathly blow when providence saves the Türmer just in time". The poem is about the skeletons of men and women who have died dance in the middle of the night. When their shrouds fall across the graveyard, the warder picks one up. When the dead try to go back into their tombs, the one whose shroud was taken stays awake. He seeks out the warder and seeks the warder's death unless he returns it.
