Analysis Of Death Is Not Master By May Miller

894 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Matters of life after death

In May Miller’s Poem “Death is not Master” the persona explains that death is not the master that will increase the desperation but it is a way to become eternally calm. Many poems on the topic of death explain it as powerful thing that fears the existence of human beings, but Miller’s persona death is a way to achieve eternal serenity. She explains death as something that can end all the worldly tears, desires and tension and transform the human memory into a sculpture which is unaware of tensions. Miller’s persona believes that blocking death will be unfair as it will be a barrier to the everlasting happiness and calmness that lies inside the grave. Miller’s persona is an elaboration of Christian beliefs that death ends all worldly problems …show more content…

The opening line “I cannot let you die” (Line 1) represents how much the persona loves the reader and wants that she/he should not die. Immediately, the persona explains her love by saying “I block factual death” (Line 2). This shows that she doesn’t want you to die and she could block death with any fact. Again the second line ‘I’ is used to explain the persona’s love with ‘you’ that she can use any fact to block the death. The binary of “I” in the first two lines and use of ‘you’ before the last word “due” explains the relationship between ‘I’, ‘you’ and ‘death’ in the second line. The binary use of ‘I’ in first two lines and closing them with rhyming words ‘die’ and ‘death’ create the punch line of the first stanza that no one wants his/her loved ones to die and they could try to block death using any fact they can. The link of first two lines in with line 7 and 8, that by blocking death she will “There fix you shining / In a place of sun” (Line 7, 8). The interesting link between the first two lines of Stanza 1 and last two lines reinforce the feelings of love and hate for death that everyone will block death to let their loved one shine like the

Show More
Related

  • Millay's View on Death as Depicted in Renascence

    720 Words  | 2 Pages

    As Edna St. Vincent Millay begins her second paragraph of Renascence, she describes herself as joyous of her coming death. Millay has been telling the reader of her frustration and anguish as she lies on the ground burdened by the sin of her life. She cries out in sheer pain, "Ah, awful weight!" She actually describes herself as "craving" death. The dying experience was becoming so painful for Millay, that she just wanted the process to be finished. The second paragraph welcomes Millay into her eternity and in turn she becomes relaxed and satisfied about her passing from life. Millay takes on a very difficult task of not only describing the final stage of death as a joyous thing, but also attempting to persuade her audience into believing the same thing.

    Read More

  • Millay's Poem 'Thou Famished Grave'

    365 Words  | 1 Pages

    Millay’s poem “Thou famished grave” explores death’s inevitable success and the speaker’s resistance against it to gain victory within loss. The first way Millay achieves this is through the animalization of death. The poem describes death throughout with words such as, “roar” (2) and “jaws” (7), which leads to a portrayal of death as a predatory animal. A further description in the poem of the speaker as “prey” (9), helps to strengthen this portrayal. As a result, this animalistic depiction of predator and prey shows death’s advantage and dominance over life. In addition, it shows that the speaker is like a gazelle being hunted by a lion. They will not stand motionless and be defeated, but will run away to survive death and “aim not to be

    Read More

  • An Analysis Of Mary Oliver's 'When Death Comes'

    1381 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the first instance, death is portrayed as a “bear” (2) that reaches out seasonally. This is then followed by a man whom “ comes and takes all the bright coins from his purse / / to buy me…” This ever-changing persona that encapsulates death brings forth a curiosity about death and its presence in the living world. In the second stanza, “measles-pox” (6) is an illness used to portray death’s existence in a distinctive embodiment. This uncertainty creates the illusion of warmth and welcomenesss and is further demonstrated through the reproduction of death as an eminent figure. Further inspection allows the reader to understand death as a swift encounter. The quick imagery brought forth by words such as “snaps” and “shut” provoke a sense of startle in which the audience may dispel any idea of expectedness in death’s coming. This essential idea of apparent arrival transitions to a slower, foreseeable fate where one can imagine the enduring pain experienced “an iceberg between shoulder blades” (line 8). This shift characterizes the constant adaptation in appearance that death acquires. Moreover, the idea of warmth radiating from death’s presence reemerges with the introduction to a “cottage of darkness” (line 10), which to some may bring about a feeling of pleasantry and comfort. It is important to note that line 10 was the sole occurrence of a rhetorical question that the speaker

    Read More

  • Death and Emily Dickinson

    1312 Words  | 3 Pages

    “Death, the end of life: the time when someone or something dies” (Merriam-Webster, 2014). The definition of death is quite simple, the end of life is inescapable. I chose to write about death and impermanence because it is something we all must inevitably face. People often deal with death in a number of different ways. Although it is something that we must eventually face, it can be hard to come to terms with because the idea can be hard to grasp. Some of us fear it, others are able to accept it, either way we all must eventually face it. In this essay I will look at two different literary works about death and impermanence and compare and contrast the different elements of the point of view, theme, setting, and symbolism. The comparison of these particular works will offer a deeper look into words written by the authors and the feelings that they experiencing at that particular time.

    Read More

  • Compare Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night And Because I Could Not Wait For Death

    1435 Words  | 3 Pages

    The two poems, “Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night”, by Dylan Thomas and, “Because I Could Not Wait for Death”, by Emily Dickinson, we find two distinct treatments on the same theme, death. Although they both represent death, they also represent it as something other than death. Death brings about a variety of different feelings, because no two people feel the same way or believe the same thing. The fact that our faith is unknown makes the notion of death a common topic, as writers can make sense of their own feelings and emotions and in the process hope to make readers make sense of theirs too. Both Dickinson and Thomas are two well known and revered poets for their eloquent capture of these emotions. The poems both explore death and the

    Read More

  • Concept Of Death in ‘Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night versus ‘Because I Could Not Stop For Death

    1176 Words  | 3 Pages

    Who does not cower in fear upon the thought of death? Almost everybody does! However, people have differing views on the abstract idea of dying. In examining the poem "Because I Could Not Stop For Death? by Emily Dickinson and "Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night? by Dylan Thomas, it is evident that the poets use contrasting and comparative techniques in their unique presentations of the concept of death. In the poem "Because I Could Not Stop For Death? Emily Dickinson presents the idea of acceptance of death, whereas in the poem "Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night? Dylan Thomas presents the idea of refusal and opposition to death. Despite the differences in theme, these two poets both use similar figurative language devices, such as metaphors, personification and alliteration as they explore their contrasting ideas pertaining to the concept of death. Through the use of their same literacy techniques, both of the authors have presented two very different perceptions on death: Dickinson's message is acceptance whereas Thomas?is rejection.

    Read More

  • An Explication of Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night

    789 Words  | 2 Pages

    Different men approach death in different ways, but no matter what their approach, they should fight against loss itself. Stanza analysis Stanza 1 Line 1 is a repetition of the title of the poem - a line which is repeated four times in the poem. The repetition is functional as it emphasises the theme of the poem: not to accept death without fighting it as long as possible. In stanza 1 three different phrases are used to denote the idea of death, namely good night, close of day and dying of light. The poet is very defiant: he emphasises the fact that man must fight.

    Read More

  • One Death, Different Perspectives.

    1042 Words  | 3 Pages

    There is probably no one, among people, who has not considered death as a subject to think about or the events, people, and spirits that they would face after death. Also, since we were little kids, we were asking our parents what death is and what is going to happen after we die. People have always linked death with fear, darkness, depression, and other negative feelings, but not with Emily Dickinson, a reclusive poet from Massachusetts who was obsessed with death and dying in her tons of writings. She writes “Because I could not stop for Death” and in this particular poem she delivers a really different idea of death and the life after death. In the purpose of doing that, the speaker encounters death, which was personalized to be in the form of a gentleman suitor who comes to pick her up with his horse-drawn carriage for a unique death date that will last forever.

    Read More

  • Emily Dickinson's Because I Could Not Stop For Death

    727 Words  | 2 Pages

    In Emily Dickinson’s “Because I Could Not Stop for Death,” she uses the structure of her poem and rhetoric as concrete representation of her abstract beliefs about death to comfort and encourage readers into accepting Death when He comes. The underlying theme that can be extracted from this poem is that death is just a new beginning. Dickinson deftly reassures her readers of this with innovative organization and management, life-like rhyme and rhythm, subtle but meaningful use of symbolism, and ironic metaphors.

    Read More

  • Because I Could Not Stop for Death and I Heard A Fly Buzz When I Died Poems by Emily Dickinson

    810 Words  | 2 Pages

    Death is a controversial and sensitive subject. When discussing death, several questions come to mind about what happens in our afterlife, such as: where do you go and what do you see? Emily Dickinson is a poet who explores her curiosity of death and the afterlife through her creative writing ability. She displays different views on death by writing two contrasting poems: one of a softer side and another of a more ridged and scary side. When looking at dissimilar observations of death it can be seen how private and special it is; it is also understood that death is inevitable so coping with it can be taken in different ways. Emily Dickinson’s poems “Because I Could Not Stop for Death” and “I Heard A Fly Buzz When I Died” show both parallel and opposing views on death.

    Read More

  • Biological Themes In The Film 'On Golden Pond'

    1484 Words  | 3 Pages

    Miller discuses many themes concerning death and illness. It has come to be that society view illness as a time of suffering and burden, where families and individuals are afraid of becoming sick with a chronic illness because of all the pain and suffering that comes along with it. Illness has become about prolonging life with a multitude of excess problems and a more painful life. Families and caregivers become overburdened while the patient suffers while wishing their illness to be anything but a burden to their caregivers. Death in our society is viewed very differently to different people within different settings. In a hospital for instance, death is treated as an emptiness. The existence of bright rooms, white floors, machines ringing, and tied up tubes as a patient dies is very mechanical and represents a businesslike experience as the patient is immediately forgotten after they die while their bodies are quickly shuffled out the door to make room for the next chronically ill patient. Society today views death and illness with unease and apprehension because of the fear around it where people view the hospital environment as a place for acute trauma and illness not a place of healing where one can die with dignity. On the other hand, death in places like Dr. Millers Zen Hospital have developed rituals around topic so when a patient dies there is recognition of the patient’s individuality as a human being. The Zen hospital’s rituals involve

    Read More

  • Century Quilt Tone

    910 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the second stanza the narrator describes the quilt and the dying process. The speaker imagines her mother holding and guiding her into the afterlife. By choosing the mother, the speaker stimulates a sense of compassion, love, protection and comfort which is attempting to change the ideology of death to the reader. That death is not something that the individual will have to face alone but there will be guidance and love not abonnement and loneliness. But mainly that death is not where everything stops but where people can be reunited with lost loved ones. Throughout the remainder of the poem the narrator describes individual memories that are joyful and cherished not just the speaker’s memories but memories that have been passed down the family line. The imagery of the memories do not have a sense of regret, longing or anger of the moment passing and time changing but a sense of blissfulness that those memories where ever even made. This type of imagery forces the reader to think of blissful memories of joy, family and love. That has made the reader’s life worth living. The times in our lives that resemble who we are as an individual. Since the imagery is extremely powerful but sidle, the reader gets a sense of gratefulness about having lived but an even greater sense of hope towards the future and peacefulness about dying. Attempting to show the reader dying is

    Read More

  • Emily Dickinson's Obsession with Death

    2687 Words  | 6 Pages

    Emily Dickinson became legendary for her preoccupation with death. All her poems contain stanzas focusing on loss or loneliness, but the most striking ones talk particularly about death, specifically her own death and her own afterlife. Her fascination with the morose gives her poems a rare quality, and gives us insight into a mind we know very little about. What we do know is that Dickinson’s father left her a small amount of money when she was young. This allowed her to spend her time writing and lamenting, instead of seeking out a husband or a profession. Eventually, she limited her outside activities to going to church. In her early twenties, she began prayed and worshipped on her own. This final step to total seclusion clearly fueled her obsession with death, and with investigating the idea of an afterlife. In “Because I could not stop for Death”, Dickinson rides in a carriage with the personification of Death, showing the constant presence of death in her life. Because it has become so familiar, death is no longer a frightening presence, but a comforting companion. Despite this, Dickinson is still not above fear, showing that nothing is static and even the most resolute person is truly sure of anything. This point is further proven in “I heard a Fly buzz”, where a fly disrupts the last moment of Dickinson’s life. The fly is a symbol of death, and of uncertainty, because though it represents something certain—her impending death—it flies around unsure with a “stumbling buzz”. This again illustrates the changing nature of life, and even death. “This World is not Conclusion” is Dickinson’s swan song on the subject of afterlife. She confirms all her previous statements, but in a more r...

    Read More

  • Because I Could Not Stop for Death

    619 Words  | 2 Pages

    Life and death are but trails to eternity and are seen less important when viewed in the framework of eternity. Emily Dickinson’s poem Death is a gentleman taking a woman out for a drive.” Because I could not stop for death, He kindly stopped for me” (Dickinson 1-2). Emily describes being a busy woman who is caught up in everyday situations.

    Read More

  • Emily Dickinson Poem 465 Analysis

    499 Words  | 1 Pages

    Emily Dickinson’s poem #465 questions the very essence of death, which is the assurance of a life beyond the one we already live. In the speaker’s case, after her own death, she is lost in a world between life and death. Through Dickinson’s allusion, symbolism, and perspective she is able to conclude that life is not so black and white; there is gray and more specifically, in such cases of death, there is no simple

    Read More

More about Analysis Of Death Is Not Master By May Miller

Open Document