WORLD LITERATURE ANTHOLOGY COURSEWORK
How do the poets in ‘Because I Could Not Stop for Death’ and ‘Time’ address the concepts of immortality, time and death?
Name: Antonia Tsang
Word Count: 1,636
Miss Johns
Emily Dickinson’s ‘Because I could not stop for Death’ addresses one of the most mysterious aspects of life - death, and what comes after it. She describes and personifies the character of Death, and explores the concept and possibility of immortality and she journeys in a carriage towards her own impending death. As the poem continues, her understand and maturity towards death deepens as she gets closer to Death. Dickinson lead a secluded life overshadowed by the frequent deaths of her relatives, which was reflected in her poetry. The poem’s tone is calm and accepting of death - she does not try to delay or avoid death. The poem is written in Emily Dickinson’s signature fragmented style, full of enjambment and caesura cleverly placed to create tension and emphasis for effect. The poem’s unpredictable structure and rhythm makes each stanza unique and gives the poem an overall uneven beat, mirroring the horses that pull her carriage. The first stanza is written in common meter, a structure commonly used in hymns, hinting at Dickinson’s religious background. ‘Because I could not stop for Death’ challenges our view and ideas of death as Dickinson recounts to the reader her journey through life to whatever lies beyond.
Another poem that offers a different perspective on a much-debated subject is Allen Curnow’s poem ‘Time’, where time is personified as a higher being who explores the definition and vastness of time through a series of metaphors. ‘Time’ describes the more philosophical, symbolic meanings of time, both ...
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...time while Allen Curnow concludes that time is immortal and therefore a symbol and definition of immortality, while death and decay is just a byproduct of time. The language used in ‘Time’ is eloquent and sophisticated, and it speaks to the audience directly, much like someone making a speech. It makes us think about both the tangible and intangible definitions and features of Time: time is undefinable, unstoppable, powerful, diverse, infinite; Time is the foundation which our lives rely on, it is all around us everywhere and it is everything. ‘Because I could not stop for Death’ suggests that Death is not what we might commonly perceive it to be, and that to truly understand death we have to experience it ourselves. Death, rather than ending our lives, instead leads us to immortality and beyond. In Emily Dickinson’s own words, “Death is a wild night and a new road.”
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.
For example, Whitman’s “Crossing Brooklyn Ferry” discusses the experiences of one man and how despite “A hundred years hence, or ever so many hundred years hence, others will see them,” (3293). This very line suggests that time and death as a result of time passing cannot subdue the eternity of experiences. Whitman even goes as far as to say “It avails not, time nor place - distance avails not, I am with you, you men and women of a generation, or ever so many generations hence,” (3293). Emily Dickinson’s also manifests the theme of deaths limits. Dickinson writes: “Because I could not stop for Death - He kindly stopped for me,” (3368). These lines suggest that death itself waited (or rather had to wait) for a time when he could intervene this woman. Subsequently, this would mean that death must abide by time and therefore limited by time itself. “We slowly drove- He knew not haste” (3368), also provides support for this idea. This line of the poem infers that death is unaware of the concept of faster thus clearly through his unknowing is bounded or limited once again. Two of the most renowned poets in American literature are Dickinson and Whitman. Their styles are so hard to define yet so easy to understand. The all too familiar swift liquid that is Dickinson is a decent put side by side to Whitman’s hearty melancholy. That being the case, through combination one realizes that both Whitman and Dickinson share the common theme of death’s limits in their work. While Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson 's works seem to be quite different, they share common themes, namely death and religion. While their views may differ, there is a sense of commonality when reading their works side by side. Both poets are acclaimed American writers, offering up distinct voices and beliefs that echo still
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.
In literature, themes shape and characterize an author’s writing making each work unique as different points of view are expressed within a writing’s words and sentences. This is the case, for example, of Edgar Allan Poe’s poem “Annabel Lee” and Emily Dickinson’s poem “Because I could not stop for Death.” Both poems focus on the same theme of death, but while Poe’s poem reflects that death is an atrocious event because of the suffering and struggle that it provokes, Dickinson’s poem reflects that death is humane and that it should not be feared as it is inevitable. The two poems have both similarities and differences, and the themes and characteristics of each poem can be explained by the author’s influences and lives.
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.
“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.
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 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.
Emily Dickinson uses Death as an extended metaphor to shed new light on the subject. Her poem “Because I Could Not Stop for Death” does not directly explain
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.
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 ...
One of the ideas that poets use in literature is the thought of immortality, something that cannot be control in real life but in fiction it can be As Emily Dickinson proves it in the stanza ‘’because I could not stop from death he kindly stop from me ‘’ (lit anthology) what she point out that even when least expected death can happen whether or not you are ready to depart from the world. In the poem the narrator is a dead woman that tell her process of dying she indicate her wish to live longer to live an eternal-life by using metaphor to show that death is just process of life that it cannot be stop from coming to you . In the second stanza Dickinson also uses simile to compare the act of death as a man seducing her ...
In?Because I could not stop for Death,? Emily Dickinson uses many poetic devices to make her poem stand out among other poems centered around death. Dickinson's use of irony, imagery, symbolism, and word choice adds to the overall effect of her view of?death? itself. It is a sham. The way she structured this poem helps her stand out as one of the greatest poets of all time.
In “Because I could not stop for Death” by Emily Dickinson, death is kind and appealing that it brings her to eternity. In line 3-4, “The Carriage held but just Ourselves – And Immortality.” Dickinson describes death as a person and she travels with him to eternity, where immortality is the passenger. It shows that Dickinson does not think that death is the end of one’s journey and instead, she thinks that it is a journey towards a new beginning. Also, in the second stanza, “We slowly drove – He knew no haste/
In Dickinson’s poem “Because I Could Not Stop for Death,” Dickinson portrays what it is like to go through the process of dying. According to Mark Spencer of the Explicator, the speaker portrays death as a two-step process. It is said that this particular poem makes more sense if read from the perspective that reconciliation with God is a delayed process. In this poem the speaker has ended their existence on earth but have yet to reach the final step. The horses are pulling the carriage “toward Eternity” which suggests that the final step has yet to be reached. The speaker says that “Centuries” feel “Shorter than the day” implying that although an end will come, it will not come soon. Although the end is said not to come soon, it will seem like nothing to those who have passed. A grave site is compared to a house when the carriage passes a “Swelling in the ground”, because indeed the speaker will stay in this home until her final day comes. The speaker then becomes “quivering and chill” wearing her thin flimsy clothing but then realizes that the clothing has become appropriate for what is to come. The speaker indicates that the carriage is only pausing because the current state she is in is only temporary (Spence). It is said that the speaker looks death in the eye and escapes ...