...Emily Dickinson’s “Because I could not stop for Death” tells a story of a woman’s encounter with Death and the journey they take together. The narrator who remains nameless throughout the poem takes her time to recount her tale of how she met with Death; the carriage ride they took that led them through the day and into the night to her final resting place. She describes her last memories of her day with compassion, narrating her feelings about Death and his demeanor as well as her inevitable fate, showing no fear of what is to come. Dickinson brought a fresh portrayal of Death within this poem, illustrating Death as a man. She gives him a less frightening aspect within the first stanza, recounting “He kindly stopped for me“(2). This form gives him a more gallant appeal towards the narrator. Rather than the normal reaper image that is thought of, Death can be viewed more as a suitor, giving the reader a chance to analyze the narrator’s feelings towards Him. As the poem progresses, the narrator speaks of Death driving slowly. Showing no urgency to reach the destination, the reader can conclude that her demise was neither quick nor one she was afraid of. In the first line of stanza three, the narrator...
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...One can argue that it is not death that is scary; it is the fact that it is unknown. Emily Dickinson is known for her poems on death. The poem Because I could not stop for Death argues on this topic. According to Dickinson, death is a peaceful experience. She emphasises this theme with the use of style, characters, and imagery. Emily Dickinson uses tender diction, and repetition to emphasise the theme of death being a peaceful experience. In the poem, the reader is continuously bombarded with the peaceful vocabulary. Words such as “kindly,” “slowly,” “civility,” “setting sun” and others are used to make the tone quite mild and smooth. These words provide encouragement to the previously established image in the readers mind. This is significant because it helps emphasize the theme even more. Next, Emily Dickinson uses repetition in her work to help support the theme. She constantly repeats the word “We,” that symbolises the fact that she1 and death are together, with no pain. If there were some sort of tension between the personified death, and the speaker, Emily Dickinson would have used a word that shows separation between the two distinct characters. By using the style of diction and repetition Emily Dickinson supports her theme. There are two (and a minor one)2 major characters in the poem that all share the show the element of peace. The kind characteristics of the speaker, death and the horses’ highlight the theme. From the line “I had put away My labour and my...
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...Emily Dickinson “Because I could not stop for Death-” and “I heard a Fly buzz- when I died” Emily Dickinson has a very intriguing manner of writing. Exploring her poems, I realize she conveys her own obsession with demise. Many of her writings on this subject depict death in different ways. It is represented as a gentle metaphor or as a hopeless distraction. Dickinson portrays these contrasting views of death in her poems: “Because I could not stop for Death” and “I heard a Fly buzz- when I died.” Kreidler, Michele L. "Emily Dickinson "Because I Could Not Stop For Death." Literary Contexts In Poetry: Emily Dickinson's 'Because I Could Not Stop For Death' (2009): 1. Literary Reference Center. Web. 29 May 2014. Meyer, Michael. "The Study of Emily Dickinson." The compact Bedford introduction to literature: reading, thinking, writing. 9th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2012. . Print Emily Dickinson’s poem “Because I could not stop for Death,” follows a woman’s passage from expiry into eternal life. The carriage that picks her up is a representation of immortality, while death is embodied as a gentleman that is taking a friend on a carriage ride. The driver “knew no haste” as they slowly drove. This personified version of death is kind and peaceful. As they continue on their trip, it is understood that death is a normal part of existence as they ride passed ordinary events of being; students playing, beautiful fields, and the setting sun. The conclusion of the poem...
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...Whitman Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson's works have numerous differences. Compared to Dickinson's short and seemingly simple poems, Whitman's are long and often complex. Yet both twentieth century writers share several similarities when scrutinized thoroughly. Though their approaches differ, they often deal with the same themes, and both pioneered their own unique style of writing. Using death as a theme is probably the strongest connection that Whitman and Dickinson share. Whitman's view on death is reflective of his belief in Transcendentalism. In "Song of Myself", Whitman uses the scientific principle of the conservation of energy to assert that there is life after death, because energy cannot be destroyed; only transformed. In stanza six, he writes "And what do you think has become of the women and children?/ They are alive and well somewhere,/ The smallest sprouts shows there is really no death" (Whitman 124-126). Whitman contends that life remains long after death, Dickinson's writings on death are more complex and contradictory. She personifies death, generally seeing as a lord or as a compelling lover. In one of her more popular poems, "Because I could not stop for Death", death is like a kindly courter. He picks her up in a "Carriage held but just for Ourselves-/ And Immortality" (Dickinson 3-4). Many of her other poems are about the moment of death, and what happens when the living cross over into the dead. In "I heard a Fly buzz- when I died", Dickinson tries to...
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...“Because I Could Not Stop for Death,” “I Heard a Fly Buzz,” and “Death, Be Not Proud” speak on death. Emily Dickinson wrote both “Because I Could Not Stop for Death” and “I Heard a Fly Buzz.” John Donne composed “Death, Be Not Proud.” These poems, written over 200 years apart, show how people continually try to understand and process death. Dickenson and Donne used different rhyming patterns to express their thoughts on death. It seems that the only similarities that these authors share appears to be that they wrote about death and were both poets. Emily Dickinson wrote “Because I could not stop for Death” in 1863. Dickinson's poem was not published until 1890, twenty-seven years after it was written and 4 years after Dickinson died. Emily Dickinson spent her life living in isolation. Some consider this Dickinson's most famous poem. In this poem, Dickenson looks at death and the journey that “Death” goes on. Death passes a schoolyard, fields of grain, and the setting sun as it heads toward eternity....
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...The Paradox of Death Death comes to us all one way or another, there is no escaping death. Our natural life’s cycle must take its course. The core focal point of this exposition is to compare and contrast the symbol of death and impermanence in the poems Because I Could Not Stop for Death by Emily Dickinson and Do Not Go Gentle into that Good Night by Dylan Thomas. Each poem offers a different perspective towards accepting death. In one literary work we have someone who welcomed death submissively, in contrast to another literary work where the author is willing someone dear to him to fight against death. Together the two literary works incorporated the same theme with dissimilar points of view, ranging from the way they utilize their respective literary devices such as personification, point of view, symbolism, figure of speech, tone, mood and imagery. The unconformity of the poems “Do Not Go Gentle into that Good Night” and “Because I Could Not Stop for Death” overshadows the parallel theme of death connecting them. The first poem I’ll discuss will be the poem “Because I Could Not Stop for Death” by Emily Dickinson, which is written in the using a meter form. In agreement with Karen Silvestri, “meter in poetry is what brings the poem to life and is the internal beat or rhythm with which it is read (Silvestri, 2014)”. “Poetry is meant to be recited and the number of beats per line of spoken poetry determines the name of the rhythm, though not often seen, rhythms are named...
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...Emily Dickinson’s feelings towards death in the poem “Because I could not stop for Death” Emily Dickinson’s poem “Because I could not stop for Death” shows how the speaker is unfearful towards death. The poem consists of twenty-four lines, and six stanzas. She outlines how the death in the poem was in three stages: the car ride, the scenes, and the home. This is significant because the speaker shows the slow progression of her death and how it relates to an outline of her life. Emily Dickinson’s poem “Because I could not stop for Death” shows her feelings of calmness and un-fearfulness towards death. The car ride symbolizes the beginning of the speaker’s death, and is the first setting of the poem. The death was announced in a carriage. “He...
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...century America was greatly influenced by the Civil War. There was a great suffrage movement happening at the same time, the Civil War and Reconstruction Era. One type of art used to express feelings is poetry. Emily Dickinson stands out as a poet of the Civil War and Reconstruction Era because her poetry communicated her...
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...Emily Dickinson Emily Dickinson's unusual character and style has made her become one of the world's most famous poets. Emily Dickinson was born in Amherst, Massachusetts on December 10,1830 to a prominent family, her father Edward Dickinson was both a lawyer and the Treasurer of Amherst College. Emily"s mother was Emily Norcross Dickinson. Emily had one older brother, William Austin and a little sister, Lavinia. She was educated at the Amerherst Academy, the institute that her grandfather helped found. She also spent a year at Mount Holyoke Female Seminary in South Hadley, but had left because she did not like the religious environment. For a woman of this time, this much education was very rare. Emily Dickinson was a very mysterious person as she got older she became more and more reclusive too the point that by her thirties, she would not leave her house and would withdraw from visitors. Emily was known to give fruit and treats to children by lowering them out her window in a basket with a rope to avoid actually seeing them face to face. She developed a reputation as a myth, because she was almost never seen and when people did catch a glimpse of her she was always wearing white. Emily Dickinson never got married but is thought to have had a relationship with Reverend Charles Wadsworth who she met in the spring of 1854 in Philadelphia. He was a famous preacher and was married. Many scholars believe that he was the subject of her love poems. Emily probably only saw Wadsworth...
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...Death is personified as a person in John Donne's, "Death, be not proud" as well as in Emily Dickinson's "Because I could not stop for Death". Despite the different implications in each poem, the central theme is death. The inevitable realization of death is explored in both poems, by examining death as a person and by reflecting the poets' religious beliefs. Although John Donne's poem was written in 1633, the theme of death can be compared to Emily Dickinson's poem, written about two centuries later. Both Donne and Dickinson are urging the readers not fear death. However, Donne addresses this theme with assertiveness while Dickinson is more sensitive to the subject. Both Donne and Dickinson are certain that death should not be feared and emphasize...
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...BECAUSE U COULD NOT STOP FOR DEATH BY EMILY DICKINSON…. Type of Work “Because I Could Not Stop for Death” is a lyric poem on the theme of death. The contains six stanzas, each with four lines. A four-line stanza is called a quatrain. The poem was first published in 1890 in Poems, Series 1, a collection of Miss Dickinson's poems that was edited by two of her friends, Mabel Loomis Todd and Thomas Wentworth Higginson. The editors titled the poem "Chariot." Commentary and Theme “Because I Could Not Stop for Death” reveals Emily Dickinson’s calm acceptance of death. It is surprising that she presents the experience as being no more frightening than receiving a gentleman caller—in this case, her fiancé (Death personified). The journey to the grave begins in Stanza 1, when Death comes calling in a carriage in which Immortality is also a passenger. As the trip continues in Stanza 2, the carriage trundles along at an easy, unhurried pace, perhaps suggesting that death has arrived in the form of a disease or debility that takes its time to kill. Then, in Stanza 3, the author appears to review the stages of her life: childhood (the recess scene), maturity (the ripe, hence, “gazing” grain), and the descent into death (the setting sun)–as she passes to the other side. There, she experiences a chill because she is not warmly dressed. In fact, her garments are more appropriate for a wedding, representing a new beginning, than for a funeral, representing an end. Her description of the grave...
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...Sebacher March 5, 2014 Essentially I feel that each poem in its own “Funeral Blues” (W. H. Auden), “Death, be not proud” (John Donne), and “Because I could not stop for Death” (Emily Dickinson) are unique in their own way however, I feel that two poems in particular may show more similarity in each other versus all three being compared at once although, I will be comparing and contrasting all three poems towards the end of this essay. For example, When reading “Funeral Blues” (W. H. Auden), I felt a greater sense of similarity to “Because I could not stop for death” (Emily Dickinson) versus “Death, be not proud” (John Donne) so I will begin to discuss those poems first. When comparing each poem I will list the related styles between the two and the same for contrasting each when discussing the distinctive differences. In “Funeral Blues”; a poem about the mourning of a dear loved one, Auden used a great sense of imagery when writing to assist the audience in creating a mental picture. Each line used a great amount of detail for example, when Auden wrote “Let aeroplanes circle moaning overhead scribbling in the sky the message he is dead.” It was easy for me to actually picture this statement mentally due to his choice of words. Also, he uses a rhyme scheme that is successful in expressing the deep mourning and sorrow that he feels. The same feelings expressed in “Funeral Blues” can also be felt in “Because I could not stop for death” (Emily Dickinson). As in Auden’s poem when...
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...legend made in the history of poetry. Emily Dickinson, a famous American Poet who resided in Amherst Massachusetts, was born to a successful family who was thought of highly by many members of the community. Although, her reluctance to meet and greet people and her reputation of keeping to herself, made people think of her as strange and anti-social. Dickinson studied at the Amherst Academy in Massachusetts. However, even though Dickinson did not have many relationships with friends or people, this did not stop her from making the best out of her career. As a private prolific poet, Dickson was blessed with great success dealing with her poetry. She has had about one thousand eight hundred of her poems published in her life time, including After great pain, a formal feeling comes, and I heard a Fly buzz-when I died-; two poems which Dickinson is popular for today. These two poems strongly illustrate a theme of death and dying, to assist the reader understand and analyze the depth of this theme; Dickinson uses strong symbolism, tone, and figurative language throughout her works. Dickinson’s symbolism throughout these two poems is strong and magnificent. In After great pain, a formal feeling comes the author uses many objects to symbolize feelings having to relate with the major theme of death and dying. “The nerves sit ceremonious, like Tombs” (line 2). Dickinson uses the comparison of the nerves to tombs because the tombs symbolize death, as well as stone and stiffness, which...
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...redefining modern verse are Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson" (Burt). Both poets Emily Dickinson and Walt Whitman are considered as the founders of today’s modern American poetry that are tried to revalue the poetry of the last century. Sooner or later, but they succeeded. They put the keystone of the modern American poetry which drifted in the breeze. The poetry has been redefined in a way to be able to get to the modern society's cultural level. The modern poetry becomes more discreet and it uses the topics of everyday life spiced with emotions. The emotions of the human being began to depict a higher quality. By the poets, so to speak, the mankind adjusts to...
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...Life and Death Death is the inevitable conclusion of life. As Benjamin Franklin said, “The only things certain in life are death and taxes.” Some people fear death, and even try to fight it. In the end, they will lose the battle and end up facing death. Death is enigmatic, and has fascinated mankind since the beginning of time. The nature of death is puzzling because nobody knows what lies beyond it, and it has been the subject of much speculation in literature. This uncertainty about how to deal with our own mortality has fueled many authors’ imaginations, and they have written numerous literary works on the subject of death. Most people have seen death, even experienced the death of a relative or close friend. Sometimes there is anger or denial at the sudden loss of a loved one. Death has many strong emotions attached to it. Fear, depression, grief, remembrance, and celebration are some of these emotions, and they can be found in many literary works on the subject of death. Despite the myriad of different ideas and emotions surrounding death, the finality stays the same. “Because I Could Not Stop for Death” by Emily Dickinson and “Do Not Go Gentle into that Good Night” by Dylan Thomas are two great poems on the subject of death. Readers can get a sense of the powerful feelings and emotions about death by comparing and contrasting these literary works, and by examining each author’s use of literary elements. These works about death were written by two poets in...
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