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Death in Emily Dickinson's poetry
Poetry analysis on emily dickinson's
Theme of death in emily dickinsons poetry in i could not stop for death
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Emily Dickinson’s extensive collection of poems on the subject of death can be better understood individually once time has been taken to view her works as whole. By viewing the works as a whole, it is possible to conclude a likely theological view point of the author and then apply this theology to the individual works in order to improve interpretation. Emily Dickinson’s poem “Because I could not stop for Death” is one such poem that when viewed individually is open to a wide scope of readings. Using Dickinson’s other works in collaboration with the poem itself creates a theological viewpoint through which a more defined interpretation can be reached.
Dickinson’s poems on death indicate a theology which extends the concept of stages in life to stages in death. The stages of life are briefly presented in “Because I could not stop for Death” as the subject of the poem describes the scenes she passes in the carriage; “the School, where the children strove” represents childhood; “the Fields of Gazing Grain” represents maturity; and “the Setting Sun” old age (Shaw). These three stages of life could better be described as the stages of living, as an active ongoing process through which the stages operate “as a continuum” which “invests these isolated events with meaning.” (Shaw). Dickinson creates equilibrium to these three stages of life by depicting three stages of death: dying- death of the body, death- death of the self, and immortality-the afterlife. “Death in Emily Dickinson is not singular, nor simple, that it may usefully be subdivided” into stages in order to instill the meaning generated from the stages of life into the stages of death (Nesteruk).
In Peter Nesteruk’s article “The Many Deaths of Emily Dickinson” he describ...
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...en missed by others are not only brought to life but are given added significance. These transitions allow the reader to “momentarily glimpse a universe in which the seemingly distinct and discontinuous stages of existence are holistically implicated and purposed” (Shaw).
Works Cited
Peter Nesteruk. "The Many Deaths of Emily Dickinson." The Emily Dickinson Journal 6.1 (1997): 25-43. Project MUSE. Web. 29 Mar. 2014. .
Spencer, Mark. "Dickinson's BECAUSE I COULD NOT STOP FOR DEATH." Explicator 65.2 (2007): 95-96. Academic Search Complete. Web. 29 Mar. 2014.
Shaw, M.N. "Dickinson's Because I Could Not Stop For Death." Explicator 50.1 (1991): 20. Academic Search Complete. Web. 29 Mar. 2014.
Abbott, Collamer M. "Dickinson's 'Because I Could Not Stop For Death'." Explicator 58.3 (2000): 140. Academic Search Complete. Web. 29 Mar. 2014.
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.
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. “Although Emily Dickinson is known as one of America’s best and most beloved poets, her extraordinary talent was not recognized until after her death” (Kort 1).
Emily Dickinson is well-known as a poet who lived a secluded and sheltered life. Many of her poems focus on subjects of death and dying. In “Because I could not stop for death”, Emily Dickinson expresses her very personal thoughts on death and what follows. She presents these thoughts in the form of a poem in which she shares her feelings and philosophies as someone who experienced life as a sheltered recluse. This paper will review Emily Dickinson’s poem, and will evaluate her use of familiar sensory stimuli to describe the three stages of life as well as her use of personifications, metaphoric devices, and tone to illuminate death in a pleasant light and contradict its connotation as the end.
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.
Having a fascination with the idea of death and dying is often considered morbid. Death is a scary subject that most people avoid thinking about. Yet, death is a subject that Emily Dickinson was familiar with, and often wrote about in her poetry. Her fascination with death was evident in many of her poems, she often wrote of her own death. What happens when one dies? How do they feel? What goes through a person’s mind? These are all questions that go through someone’s mind when they allow themselves to think about dying. In two of Dickinson’s poems, “Because I could not stop for Death –” and “I heard a Fly buzz – when I died,” the speakers depict their experiences with death. Although both poems are about dying, they both differ in the tone and the setting. The details of each speaker’s encounter with death vary; one tells of a deathbed scene and the other of a calm and peaceful ride to a final resting place.
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...
Analysis of "Because I Could Not Stop for Death" by Emily Dickinson. The poets of the nineteenth century wrote on a variety of topics. One often used topic is that of death. The theme of death has been approached in many different ways to do it.
Dickinson, Emily. "Because I could not stop for Death." Norton Anthology of English Literature. Ed. M.h. Abrams. New York: W.W. Norton and Company, Inc, 1993. 726.
Dickinson, Emily. “Because I could not stop for Death.” Literature: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, Drama, and writing. Seventh Edition. X.J. Kennedy, Dana Gioia. Saddle River. Pearson Education, 2013. 777. Print.
Comparing and Contrasting Dickinson’s Poems, Because I Could Not Stop for Death and I Heard a Fly Buzz - When I Died
Dickinson, Emily. "Because I could not stop for Death." The Compact Bedford Introduction to Literature. Ed. Michael Meyer. 4th ed. Boston: Bedford-St. Martin’s, 1997. 642-643. Greenaway, Kate.
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 in literature? Johnson. Dickinson's picture to the audience is created by making?Death?
When reading “Because I Could Not Stop for Death”, it is important to note Emily Dickinson’s somber disposition on life as she tackles the heavy topics of death and the afterlife. Once understood, one can see that the message Dickinson conveys to the reader is one of hopelessness; that time and death hold power over our lives and are able to dwindle what was once meaningful.
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.”