Many people fear death due to the fact that they will leave their loved ones and descent from the face of the earth, however, Dickinson did not show any signs of fear while talking and writing about death. “A close reading of Dickinson’s poems indicates that the best of her poems revolve round the theme of death” (Antony & Dewan 2). Many of Dickinson’s poems have the central theme of death, as to no one know why, however, it is proclaimed welcoming. One of Dickinson’s famous poems “Because I could not stop for Death” displays how death can occur so naturally, and it could be a gentleman who takes you to your final destination. Dickinson’s talk about death in the story could be viewed as a prince charming or a gentleman who has arrived at the doorstep with a
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."
The speaker in “Because I Could Not Stop for Death” did not spend time worrying about her eventual demise. She spent her time working, keeping herself busy so that she would have no time for Death, “People spend much of their lives keeping busy with work or amused with play so that they do not have to think about their own imminent death” (Napierkowski and Ruby 3). Since she did not pay attention to Death he decided that he had to take the reins in the situation, “Because I could not stop for Death. /He kindly stopped for me” (Dickinson 1-2). It is obvious that the speaker does not take Death seriously due to the nonchalant tone she uses. As well as not taking Death seriously it is also apparent that the speaker has no fear of him, “While most people would try to bar the door once they recognized his identity” (Napierkowski and Ruby 2). Dickinson writes,
“Because I could not stop for Death” had a stronger impact on me. Relating to this poem is easy for me, I too would not be able to stop. Death would have to chase me, like a game of tag or hide and seek. This poem was more powerful, unlike “I heard a Fly buzz – when I died –,” dying is not something that I can make peace with at this time in my life. I could not go easily and patiently, as the flies buzzed above me. As we see from both poems, death comes when he is ready, whether we want him to or not. Death cannot be rushed or evaded.
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.
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
To begin, Dickinson has a intriguing view upon death. As a person’s life drifts away, they can be scared or they can accept it. Dickinson’s poem “I Heard a Fly Buzz When I Died” describes the last moments of a person in a room as death takes her. “I heard a Fly buzz when I died The Stillness in the
When death is the main topic of conversation; it can usually be interpreted in two ways. In Because I Couldn’t Stop for Death, Emily Dickinson shows how one could put aside their emotions and consider death to be a positive thing that occurs as it can lead to an afterlife to look forward to. In contrast, Emily Dickinson’s other poem I Heard a Fly Buzz Before I Died, shows death to be this sad quite moment where everything is slowly coming to an end, and there is nothing to look forward it, no afterlife adventure. Although Emily Dickinson’s two poems, Because I Couldn’t Stop for Death and I Heard a Fly Buzz When I Died orbit around the same central theme of dying, both poems show that there can be different approaches on what comes after death
Emily Dickinson gives an idea of how death is like a person. She describes how death waits for her. In the poem, it states how death waits for her but this is not likely because death cannot literally stop to wait for anybody. Emily Dickinson thinks that death means that a person is waiting for her to join them. She states in her poem that death is polite and has manners when death it is not possible. She states how death and their travel together in the world. People spend much of their lives keeping busy with work that they do not have to think about their but what people don’t realize death could happen at any time like in a blink of an
Emily Dickinson's "Because I could not stop for death" and " I heard a fly buzz when I died", are remarkable masterpieces that exercises thought between the known and the unknown. Critics call Emily Dickinson"s poems masterpieces with strange " haunting powers". In Dickinson's poems " Because I could not stop for death" and " I heard a fly buzz when I died" are created less than a year apart by the same poet. Both poems talk about death and the impression in the tone and symbols that exudes creativity. One might undoubtedly agree to eerie, haunting, if not frightening, tone in Dickinson's poem. Dickinson uses controlling adjectives-"slowly: and "passed"-to create a tone that seems rather placid. For example, "We slowly drove- He knew no haste/ ...We passed the school.../ We passed the setting sun," sets a slow quiet, calm, and dreamy atmosphere (5, 9, 11, 12). "One thing that impresses us," one author wrote, " is the remarkable placidity, or composure, of its tone" (Greenberg 128). The tone in Dickinson"s poems will put its readers ideas on a unifying track heading towards a buggling atmosphere. Dickinson's masterpieces lives on complex ideas that are evoked through symbols, which carry her readers through her poems. Besides the literal significance of the "school," Gazing Grain," "Setting Sun," and the "Ring" much is gathered to complete the poem's central idea. Emily brought to light the mysteriousness of the life's'cycle. Ungraspable to many, the cycle of one's'life, as symbolized by Dickinson, has three stages and then a final stage of eternity. These three stages are recognized by Mary N. Shawn as follows: "School, where children strove" (9). Because it deals with an important symbol, the "Ring" this first scene is perhaps the most important . One author noted that "the children, at recess, do not play as one would expect them to but strive" (Monteiro 20). In addition, at recess the children performed a venerable ritual, perhaps known to all, in a ring. This ritual is called "Ring-a-ring-a-roses," and is recited: Ring-a ring-a-roses, A pocket full of posies; Hush! hush! hush! hush! We're all tumble down. (qtd. In Greenaway 365) Monteiro made the discovery and concluded that "For indeed, imbedded in their ritualistic game is a reminder of the mortal stakes that the poet talks about elsewhere" (21). On this invited journey, one vividly sees the "Children" playing, laughing, and singing.
Semansky, Chris. “An overview of Because I Could Not Stop for Death”.” Poetry for Students. Detroit: Gale. Literature Resources from Gale. Web. 9 Apr. 2011.
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...
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." However, despite this difference, Dickinson seduces and catches the reader off guard by speaking of death in an unconventional way. Emily Dickinson masters describing a traumatic human event in the most mundane terms, with the help of literary devices such as imagery and language.
Death in Emily Dickinson's "Because I Could Not Stop for Death," "I Heard A Fly Buzz-When I Died," and "I Felt A Funeral In My Brain"
For Dickinson, on the contrary, death is not something unreal. As the author has written "Because I could not stop for Death, he kindly stopped for me..." After reading these two lines the reader "imagines the picture of Death being a human which joins the author during the ride" . Dickinson tries to portray the characteristics of death in the poem. Stating that there is eternity after death, the author alludes both the possibility of the life after death and absolute zero-ness of it. Unlike Plath, Dickinson not only talks about the notion of death, but personalizes it. The reader feels that the author in fact...