Despite poetry’s difficulty to compose, it serves as an outlet for people to express their emotions, creativity and ingenuity. Emily Dickinson, is one of the few who mastered the graceful and profound skill of writing verse. She was born on December 10th, 1830 in Amherst, Massachusetts. Throughout the entirety of her life, Dickinson tended to be a recluse and preferred to assert herself through poetry. In total, Dickinson wrote nearly 2,000 poems. Many of these explore death and breaking free from conventional restraints. Her poem, “Because I could not stop for Death,” delves into the former of these themes through an encounter between the author and Death itself. It was written in 1863 and published in Dickinson’s first posthumous collection, …show more content…
Marriage is often regarded as two people emerging and creating one whole being. Furthermore, in order for this merge to ensue, both groom and bride must surrender a section of themselves to gain one from their partner. This sentiment is depicted in lines 7 through alliteration where Dickenson cedes her “labor” and “leisure” and in line 8, she gains Death’s “civility.” Dickinson sacrifices her worser attributes and acquires Death’s positive courtesy. This certain exchange is especially remarkable because the usually gloomy and cruel grim-reaper possesses the positive quality. This situation helps in the reevaluation of death as a whole. In addition, Dickinson expresses how a “Carriage” carry her and Death in the third line of the poem. The carriage symbolizes the amorous relations between Dickinson and Death as carriages are considered to be romantic vehicles. They are glamorized by films such as Cinderella where Cinderella travels in a carriage, which was formerly a pumpkin, to a ball where she meets Prince Charming. Conclusively, by way of obscure symbolism, Dickinson cements the marriage between her and Death in reader’s …show more content…
During the wedding ceremony, the bride and groom recite several verses, cementing their love for one another. The phrases perhaps include “for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health.” This solidifies the spouses’ dedication and faithfulness in the best of times and the worst. This duality is shown through Dickinson’s portrayal of various settings. In stanza 3, a serene, alluring backdrop of a cornfield and setting sun is planted in the reader’s minds and over the next two stanzas, this tranquil image is torn out and replaced with a less charming frosty dew and a collapsed house. Likewise, in order to signify the spouses’ loyalty to one another, wedding vows usually end in the couple recite the line “until death do us part.” If one’s partner is Death however, the marriage presumably stands forever. In the poem, Dickinson chooses to include the words “Immortality” and “Eternity” which the reader can assume describes Dickinson and Death’s relationship and correlates with that final line in wedding vows. Ultimately, Dickinson’s use of word choice and imagery creates an affinity between “Because I could not stop for Death” and wedding
He also made us experience the awe and misery of the mother by describing her “trembling steps” when she went to read. the letter, her “sickly white face and dull in the head”. In addition to her state after her son’s death, she was “presently drest in. black”, “her meals untouched”, “fitfully sleeping often waking” and “sleeping”. her “deep longing.to be with her dead son”. Dickinson uses imaginative and figurative language.
Dickinson 's poem uses poetic devices of personification to represent death, she represents death as if it were a living being. Dickinson 's capitalization of the word “DEATH”, causes us to see death as a name, in turn it becomes noun, a person, and a being, rather than what it truly is, which is the culminating even of human life. The most notable use of this, is seen in the very first few lines of the poem when Dickinson says “Because I could not stop for Death, He kindly stopped for me”. In her poem Dickinson makes death her companion, as it is the person who is accompanying her to her grave. She states that death kindly stopped for her and she even goes as far as to give death the human ability to stop and pick her up. The occasion of death through Dickinson use of personification makes it seem like an interaction between two living beings and as a result the poem takes on a thoughtful and light hearted tone. The humanization of death makes the experience more acceptable and less strange, death takes on a known, familiar, recognizable form which in turn makes the experience more relatable. As the poem
Comparing and Contrasting Dickinson’s Poems, Because I Could Not Stop for Death and I Heard a Fly Buzz - When I Died
In the poem “Because I Could Not Stop for Death” Emily Dickinson portrays death as a polite gentleman who ushers people into the afterlife. The poem’s opening lines reveal death to be the driver of a carriage who stopped for the narrator of the poem. The narrator and death travel alone passing by several scenes of everyday life ending the journey when the carriage stops at a home. The imagery and symbols within this poem paint a picture of a calm activity that is ordinary and expected, starting with the deliberate slow pace and intimacy of the poem.
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.
Emily Dickinson’s “Death is a supple Suitor,” speaks of Death, as if it is an innocent, gentle caller who seeks to win the attention of his fair lady. Dickinson metaphorically tells a story of Death’s win over the one he is pursuing by contrasting the processes of courting, as a gentleman would do, and dying, as Death would occur. Dickinson incorporates many details, which will be discussed, and presents us with two sides of the running metaphor, which speaks of Death as a suitor, and also as the one who takes away life.
With her use of imagery, Emily Dickinson is able to govern how the reader feels and reflects about death. In her poem, "Because I could not stop for Death," the word "could" signifies that death has occurred as a past experience. Due to this poem being based on a past event, Dickinson is able to use imagery to relate death to a fresh memory of hers. In the beginning of the poem, Dickinson writes, "Because I could not stop for Death, He kindly stopped for me." Not only does Dickinson portray death as a man, but she does so in a way that the man is not perceived in a negative way. She writes as if the man is her lover, kindly stopping in a way as if he was to suit her. Death is not to be our enemy, but instead is our companion. In the next two lines, in lines three ...
Another way in which Dickinson uses the form of the poem to convey a message to the reader occurs on line four as she writes, "And Immortality." Eunice Glenn believes in the word "Immortality" is given a line by itself to show its importance (qtd). in Davis 107). Perhaps The most notable way in which Dickinson uses form is when she ends the poem with a dash of the. Judith Farr believes that the dash seems to indicate that the poem is never ending, just as eternity is never ending (331).
Imagery is a big component to most works of poetry. Authors strive to achieve a certain image for the reader to paint in their mind. Dickinson tries to paint a picture of ?death? in her own words. Thomas A. Johnson, an interpretive author of Dickinson's work, says that ?In 1863 Death came into full statue as a person. ?Because I could not stop for Death? is a superlative achievement wherein Death becomes one of the greatest characters of literature? (Johnson). Dickinson's picture to the audience is created by making ?Death? an actual character in the poem. By her constantly calling death either ?his? or ?he,? she denotes a specific person and gender. Dickinson also compares ?Death? to having the same human qualities as the other character in the poem. She has ?Death? physically arriving and taking the other character in the carriage with him. In the poem, Dickinson shows the reader her interpretation of what this person is going through as they are dying and being taken away by ?Death?. Dickinson gives images such as ?The Dews drew quivering and chill --? and ?A Swelling of the Ground --? (14, 18). In both of these lines, Dickinson has the reader conjure up subtle images of death. The ?quivering an chill? brings to the reader's mind of death being ...
Emily Dickinson is one of the most popular American poets of all time. Her poetry is seen as intense and passionate. Several of her many poems seem to be devoted to death and sadness. No one seems to know the exact connections between actual events in her life and the poetry that she wrote. The reader can see vivid images of Dickinson's ideas of death in several of her poems. Dickinson's use of imagery and symbolism are apparent in several of her death poems, especially in these three: "I Felt a Funeral in My Brain," "I Heard a Fly Buzz-When I Died," and "Because I Could Not Stop for Death."
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...
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 with everyday situations. When it comes to death, no one plans on a time or date to die; what Emily is identifying as a tragic event is translated to being a casual experience. Emily writes, “The carriage held but just ourselves, and immortality,” (3-4). Emily describes her ride with death, but affiliates a third rider Immortality. “Davidson does not emphasize what is gained after death; she emphasizes what is lost because of death,” (Privatsky 35). Emily’s third passenger has a wide variety of interpretations. Normally, one doesn’t think about death, yet Emily’s approach to death is similar of the approach to immortality. My viewpoint is Emily construes her belief in a soul that does not die but live on till eternity. “The idea of immortality is confronted with the fact of physical disintegration. We are not told what to think; we are told to look at the situation,” (Tate 26). According to Dickinson’s words, He slowly drove He knew no haste (5-6). Emily describes a relaxing slow pace towards an unknown destination. On the way she enjoys the peaceful scenes. “We passed the school, where children strove, At recess – In the Ring-“(Dickinson 9-10). Emily is reflecting in her past, this may also be seen as the beginning of a life cycle. Emily then goes on to say, We passed the Fields of Gazing Grain- (11). The phrase that she decides to use is judicious because she is not the observer, but instead she is the observed. At that point, she further goes on to describe “Setting Sun-“ as the last scene in her ride.” All three of these images suggest phases of the life cycle that the speaker has passed and is passing through and clue us in on her experience…Time has stopped for her, and the fields of grain do the gazing, not her,” (Semansky 34-35).
Because I Could Not Stop for Death In the poem "Because I could not stop for death", Emily Dickinson talks about her acceptance of death as something inevitable that comes to her and she has no control over it; although she seems confused about being alive or dead as she keeps narrating. Arthur Yvor Winters, an American poet and literary critic stated "This is a remarkably beautiful poem on the subject of daily realization of the imminence of death. " It’s a poem of departure from life, an intensely conscious leave-taking. And Allen Tate, a distinguished American poet, teacher, and critic, called this "an extraordinary poem".
Throughout Emily Dickinson’s poetry there is a reoccurring theme of death and immortality. The theme of death is further separated into two major categories including the curiosity Dickinson held of the process of dying and the feelings accompanied with it and the reaction to the death of a loved one. Two of Dickinson’s many poems that contain a theme of death include: “Because I Could Not Stop For Death,” and “After great pain, a formal feeling comes.”
In poetry, death is referred as the end of literature and it is associated with feeling of sorrows. However Emily Dickinson demonstrates that death is not the end of literature or feeling of sadness but death is a new element of inspiration in poetry and is the beginning of a new chapter in our life. In the poem ‘’Because I Could Not Stop for Death’, she discusses the encounter of a women with death, who passed away centuries ago. Dickenson uses metaphors and similes to show that the process of dying can be an enjoyable moment by appreciating the good moments in life, and by respecting death rather than fearing it. Also Dickinson portrays death in a humorous way as she compares it to man seducing her to go to her death as well, to childhood games that show the innocence of this encounter (Bloom). The poem is a reflection of how unpredictable death can be. Death is a scary process in life that should not be feared because it should be celebrate as new start.