The effects of pain on the mind and body

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The Effects of Pain on the Mind and Body

Elements of pain and despair are evident in many works of Emily Dickinson, and are present in her poem, "After Great Pain, A Formal Feeling Comes-." Dickinson's simple language draws rich meaning from the use of common words. She uses words associated with the body, with nature, with the mind, as well with physical death, to shape and articulate its sensation and significance. She approached her poetry inductively, combining words to arrive at a conclusion that the pattern of the words suggested. Dickinson's theme of the experience of pain and grief in this poem are developed through her subtle use of such elements of poetry as diction, personification, metaphor, and simile.
In this poem Dickinson brings the reader to a place where connotation and diction provide a foundation for personal thought and insight concerning death, pain and suffering, and despair. Dickson uses the word "Stiff" in her poem to describe the stiffness of the body when someone is in great pain, in shock, or is dead (line 3). When someone is experiencing pain and grief the movements of the body become very "Stiff" and "Wooden" and it is very hard for someone to move or have any expression at all (3,7). When we think of "Tombs" we associate that with darkness, desolation, death and separation (2). Dickinson uses the words "like a stone-" and &...

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