Emily Dickinson Death Be Not Proud Essay

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Recommended: Theme of death in Emily Dickinson's poems

“I'm not afraid of death; I just don't want to be there when it happens.” (Marc Twain). This quotation describes many people’s denied fear of death which directly relates to ideas of death. Death is a something that’ll eventually happen to us all whether we like it or not, so why do so many fear death? Death normally takes on a persona of a Grim reaper or a dark kiss of death which may explain why there is a fear as death isn’t typically a positive thing. However, death can take on many personas and death can be either be good or bad. In Emily Dickinson’s “Because I could not stop death and in John Donne’s “Death be not proud”, death takes on two different personas and the speakers react to both roles which reveals different views on a classic Grim reaper perspective on death. Death takes on many forms and some say death …show more content…

Death takes on different roles than the traditional grim reaper in both Emily Dickinson’s poem “Because I could not stop death” and John Donne’s “Death be not proud” as well. Both of the authors personify death throughout the poem, In Dickinson’s poem death seems to have beauty and be more of a gently guide or the idea of “the kiss of death” coming to life. The beauty death embodies parallels a leisure day in the park through the words “We slowly drove – He knew no haste And I had put away My labor and my leisure too, For His Civility.”(Donne 9). The quotation also describes death as a gentle and calm person who can stop to smell the roses while doing his job which embodies the idea of beauty. Donnes’, however, speaker perceives death as prideful, not in control and a “slave to fate, chance, kings and desperate me.”( Donne 9). Death in a way is seen as an evil being that shows no good or despair for others. Donne also personifies death by the description “Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so” (Donne

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