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Recommended: Essays on death
Death is a topic I really don’t like discussing. I find it awkward to talk about and things you say within the topic of death can be misconstrued in so many ways. When you think about it, every living thing dies eventually; without proper care and maintenance, some living things die quicker than others. When I read “Because I Could Not Stop for Death” by Emily Dickinson, it threw me off guard of how the poem was structured, when it came to the tone and her particular word choice for different things. I decided to write about this poem because, out of all the poems we were to read for class, this poem stuck out to me the most, and also to challenge myself and write about a topic that really isn’t in my comfort zone. Because death is inevitable …show more content…
The poem starts off with death giving the speaker a grand gesture by picking her up in a carriage, since the speaker “could not stop” for a reason that is unknown (line 1). But the speaker is descriptive, by letting the reader know that death stopped “kindly” (line 2). Because of this kindness displayed by “death,” the reader can assume that “death” is not something to be afraid of. As the poem continues, the speaker begins to gets comfortable with “death,” by putting “his civility” before her “labor and…leisure” (lines 7-8). This act of selflessness made by the speaker comes from the previous act of kindness made by “death.” As the poems progresses, the speaker starts associating herself with “death” and immortality, who is also riding in the carriage, by saying “we” and “us,” as if she and “death” has become one. Not many people would associate themselves with something as negative as “death” and immortality, but off of close inspection, one can assume that the three individual figures that were once riding on the carriage together have become one and will encounter the afterlife together. Personification might have been used to humanize “death” but the tone throughout the store further enhances that the speakers journey towards, and after …show more content…
The speaker discusses her trip with death in a very calm manner. The speaker describes how “death” drove the carriage, which was very slowly, as if he was in no hurry to get him, the speaker, and “immortality” to their destination (line 5). One could assume that the speaker’s death experience was not quick and abrupt, but slow and prolonged. The poem progresses and the different places that the carriage passes by are pointed out by the speaker as well. Instead of dark and dreary imagery, the speaker points out kids playing on a playground, a wide field of unpicked crops, and an orange sunset passing her, “death” and immortality by (lines 9-12). These visuals are very serene, like something you would see on a regular, ordinary day. This part of the poem expresses the journey the speaker has as she ventures to her afterlife. The speaker’s trek into the afterlife has somewhat of a reminiscing feeling to it; she lived a plain, but good life, and now it’s about to come to an end. Towards the very end of the poem, the speaker recalls the carriage stopping in front of her “house,” which is a swelling under the ground (lines 17-18). The lump in the ground is the speaker’s casket, but she does not refer to it as that, but her home. The speaker has come to the realization that she will be here for all of “eternity” and is accepting of that (line 24). However, the symbols portrayed throughout the
She personifies death as a gentleman who kindly takes her for a journey in his carriage. She also personifies immortality as a person riding with them in the carriage of the. She uses the paradox “The Cornice on the ground”. Whitman’s language is poetic and realistic. Both poems discuss the view of death, but from different perspectives.
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.
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.
Because I Could Not Stop for Death is proclaimed to be Emily Dickinson’s most famous poem. This poem reveals Emily Dickinson’s calm acceptance of death. She portrays death as a gentleman that surprises her with a visit. Emily illustrates everyday scenes in a life cycle. While her metaphors explore death in an immutable way, her lines often contain as much uncertainty as meaning.
When Death stops for the speaker, he reins a horse-drawn carriage as they ride to her grave. This carriage symbolizes a hearse of which carries her coffin to her grave a day or two after her death. As they ride, they pass, “the School… / the Fields of Gazing Grain— / [and] the Setting Sun—” (lines 9-12). These three symbolize the speakers life, from childhood in the playgrounds, to labor in the fields, and finally to the setting sun of her life. When the speaker and Death arrive at the house, it is night.
Emily Dickinson once said, “Dying is a wild night and a new road.” Some people welcome death with open arms while others cower in fear when confronted in the arms of death. Through the use of ambiguity, metaphors, personification and paradoxes Emily Dickinson still gives readers a sense of vagueness on how she feels about dying. Emily Dickinson inventively expresses the nature of death in the poems, “I felt a Funeral, in my Brain (280)”, “I Heard a fly Buzz—When I Died—(465)“ and “Because I could not stop for Death—(712)”.
One primary element of death is the experience of dying. Many of of us are scared of the thought of death. When we stop and think about what death will be like, we wonder what it will feel like, will it be painful, will it be scary? In Emily Dickinson's poem Because I Could Not Stop for Death, she focuses on what the journey into her afterlife will be like. Dickinson uses the first person narrative to tell her encounter with death. The form that she uses throughout the poem helps to convey her message. The poem is written in five quatrains. Each stanza written in a quatrain is written so that the poem is easy to read. The first two lines of the poem, “Because I could not stop for Death, He kindly stopped for me;” (Clugston 2010), gives you a clear view of what the poems central theme is. Unlike most poems that are about death, Dickinson's attitu...
Emily Dickinson is one of the numerous poets who uses death as the subject of several of her poems. In her poem "Because I Could Not Stop for Death," Death is portrayed as a gentleman who comes to give the speaker. a ride to eternity. Throughout the poem, Dickinson develops her unusual. interpretation of death and, by doing so, composes a poem full of imagery that is both unique and thought provoking.
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
In the first stanza, when she says "I could not stop for death, He kindly stopped for me", she’s not ready to die but accepts the fact that it is a natural thing that happens to all human beings, and comes at its own time, no matter what you are doing or where you are it will come and take you, to which she seems content. She personifies death as if it was a kind gentleman, or her groom that comes to pick her up and take her away in his carriage on a pleasant ride; she also realizes that ironically someone else is riding along with them, Immortality—looking at it in a positive way. It is also interesting to point out how she separates death from immortality, when she says “The carriage held but just ourselves—and immortality”. She seems excited about her journey with her two companions, and feels so pleased by this gentleman’s courtesy that she gives up her distress and freedom to enjoy it –when you are dead, there are no more troubles and no more leisure time. She feels happy with her exchange of life for death’s civility.
Emily Dickinson stands out from her contemporaries by discussing one of man's inevitable fears in an unconventional way: death. In two of her poems, "I heard a fly buzz when I died" and "Because I could not stop for death," Dickinson expresses death in an unforeseen way. Although Dickinson portrays death in both of these poems, the way that she conveys the experience is quite different in each poem. Dickinson reveals death as a grim experience, with no glimpse of happiness once one's life is over in "I heard a fly buzz when I died. " In contrast to this, Dickinson consoles the reader by characterizing death as a tranquil journey in "Because I could not stop for Death."
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.
The speaker believes that there is life after death, she believes that death isn’t the end but it is one step closer to eternity. She believes that death is something that happens to us and is not something we can challenge or decide when and how it happens. In the poem Dickenson presents death as something other than death. She uses the poetic device of personification to present death as if it was a human being. (Napierkowski 26-38.) She humanizes the experience making it more acceptable, fearsome and less abstract. (Napierkowski 26-38.) She capitalizes death to make the word more like someone’s name rather than being depicted as the end of human life. Dickenson describes “death” as her companion who is accompanying her to her resting place, her grave. (Napierkowski 26-38.) She states in the poem that “He kindly stopped for me.” Therefore making the event of death, through her use of personification an interaction between human
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 ...
Death is something no one bears the power to control. Emily Dickinson does an extraordinary job at presenting death in many of her poems. Dickinson uses death as the central theme for many of her poems. Living next to the cemetery from a young age, it had a great influence on Dickinson and her incorporation of death and immortality in her poems. Emily Dickinson talks about death and the meaning of death in many of the poems give her readers an understanding of how darkness can be viewed. It is strange for a writer to talk about death as much as she does, however, it is presented very smoothly in her poems. Talking so much about death, it seemed, as Dickinson was obsessed with the idea of an afterlife. The loss of a very close friend, Samuel