Preview

An Analysis Of Emily Dickinson's Because I Could Not Stop For Death

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
113 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
An Analysis Of Emily Dickinson's Because I Could Not Stop For Death
Emily Dickinson, a chief figure in American literature, wrote hundreds of poems in her lifetime using unusual syntax and form. Several if not all her poems revolved around themes of nature, illness, love, and death. Dickinson’s poem, Because I could not stop for Death, a lyric with a jarring volta conflates several themes with an air of ambiguity leaving multiple interpretations open for analysis. Whether death is a lover and immortality their chaperone, a deceiver and seducer of the speaker to lead her to demise, or a timely truth of life, literary devices such as syntax, selection of detail, and diction throughout the poem support and enable these different understandings to stand alone.
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Because I Could Not Stop For Death Summary
    • 796 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Because I Could Not Stop For Death Summary

    “Because I could not stop for Death” by Emily Dickinson, was first published in 1862. Dickinson was known for writing poetry mainly about death. When we think about death, we imagine something terrifying, but in this poem it is seen in a different perspective. In the poem, the speaker comes upon death, but not in a scary or bad way. Yet, death has approached her in a gentleman-like way. In this poem it’s talked about as a kind human being, who is simply taking her along a journey around town and death is just a stop away. While reading the poem we believe that the speaker is going to her death bed but once we reach the last stanza of the poem, we are left in quite a surprise.…

    • 796 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Explication of Emily Dickinson's Poem: Because I Could Not Stop for Death Essay Example
    • 693 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Explication of Emily Dickinson's Poem: Because I Could Not Stop for Death Essay Example

    The poem "Because I Could Not Stop for Death" by Emily Dickinson expresses the speaker's reflection on death. The poem focuses on the concept of life after death. This poem's setting mirrors the circumstances by which death approaches, and death appears kind and compassionate. It is through the promise of immortality that fear is removed, and death not only becomes acceptable, but welcomed as well. As human beings, we feel that death never comes at a convenient or opportune time. When Dickinson says, "Because I could not stop for Death," she causes the reader to ask why she could not stop. The obvious answer is that she was so wrapped up in her own life that she did not think about death. She makes it clear that it is inescapable, though, when she says, "He kindly stopped for me." The next lines, "The Carriage held but just Ourselves-/And Immortality," signify that the miracle of life is our most precious possession and promises the gift of unending life. Immortality's presence helps to remove fears as we exit the physical world and provides the recipient with the necessary assistance to assure that the transition from reality to spirituality is a pleasant experience. If the promise of immortality did not exist, one would never go along willingly, nor would one welcome death without fear. Death and the speaker ride along with absolutely no concept of the passage of time. They are not hurried, as they have forever to reach their destination. This is stated in the line "We slowly drove-/He knew no haste." Having completed all her earthly chores, the speaker states that they are no longer of any concern to her. Now there is no sewing, cooking, cleaning, farming, or caring for loved ones. The speaker has been allowed the luxury of rest and relaxation, as the next lines reveal: "And I had put away-/My labor had my leisure too." Therefore, the person and death share a reminiscent journey together as they stroll down…

    • 693 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Theme Of Death In Emily Dickinson's Poetry
    • 511 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Theme Of Death In Emily Dickinson's Poetry

    Death is an odd thing, humans do not know what waits for them the moment their hearts stop beating, they do not know where they’ll end up going- but death is a common topic. Whether it be in movies or writing, death has made its impression on the world; especially on poet Emily Dickinson. Dickinson’s poems, “I heard a Fly buzz- when I died” and “Because I could not stop for Death” focus on a consistent theme of death and her own curiosity on what it might be like to die herself. Dickinson’s life and use of the archetypal device have a connection to helping fuel her dreary, death revolving, poetry.…

    • 511 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Death In Emily Dickinson's Poetry
    • 1217 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Death In Emily Dickinson's Poetry

    Emily Dickinson is unquestionably one of the most significant, innovative, and renowned American poets. She did not always receive such high praise, however, as most of her fame and honor was obtained long after she died. While she was alive, she lived most of her life isolated from society as a recluse. During this reclusion, however, she wrote almost eighteen hundred poems, and one of these included “Because I could not stop for Death” (Mays 1187). This is one of her most popular poems and that is in part because it allows the audience to analyze the topic of death and the struggle to come to grip with one’s own demise. The concept of Death is humanized within this poem. “He” is portrayed as a groom and a conductor, as much as he is a robber…

    • 1217 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Poem Analysis of Emily Dickinson's, Because I Could Not Stop for Death
    • 743 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Poem Analysis of Emily Dickinson's, Because I Could Not Stop for Death

    Cited: Dickinson, Emily. "Because I Could Not Stop for Death." The Compact Bedford Introduction to Literature: Reading, Thinking, Writing. 9th ed. Ed. Michael Meyer. Boston: Bedford/St. Martins, 2012. 844. Print.…

    • 743 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Emily Dickinson Research Paper
    • 978 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Emily Dickinson Research Paper

    Michael Salvucci Mrs. Comeau English 10 Honors Death, Pain, and the Pursuit of Peace Although Emily Dickinson’s poetry is profoundly insightful, her poems have a very confinedpan of subjects and themes. Most likely due to her early life and social reclusion, Dickinson’s poetry is limited to three major subjects: death, pain, and on a somewhat lighter note, nature. Dickinson’s poetry is greatly influenced by her early life as she led an extremely secluded and pessimisticlife. In her early adult years the poet spent one year studying at female seminary, from 1847 to 1848. Dickinson’s blunt pessimistic attitude is shown in a letter, written to a friend, as she says “I am not happy…Christ is calling everyone here, all my companions have answered, and I am standing alone in rebellion.” (Meltzer 20-21) The poets self-described rebellious manner can be acclaimed to her residence featuring many politically active and dominant men, as her brother, father and grandfather were all attorneys with interest in politics. Again in a letter to a friend written during a political convention, Dickinson wonders “why can’t [she] be a delegate in the convention?” as she says “[she] knows all about the tariff and the law.” (Sewall 64-65) She recognizes the gender barrier in society and as a result Dickinson develops a unique style of poetry. Because I could not stop for Death, He kindly stopped for me; The carriage held but just ourselves And Immortality. (Lines 1-4) The speaker’s use of the word ‘kindly’ to describe death exemplifies his civil and considerate manner, but is his courteous character an illusion? Later in the poem the speaker writes: We slowly drove, he knew no haste, And I had put away My labor, and my leisure too, For his civility. (4-8) Because of death’s kindness in stopping for the speaker, she “put[s] away / [her] labor, and [her] leisure too,” (5-6), is death being true in taking her to heaven, or is he betraying her? There interposed a fly (9-12)…

    • 978 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Horses Heads Were Toward Eternity
    • 1712 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Horses Heads Were Toward Eternity

    However, in “Because I Could Not Stop For Death” Emily Dickinson creates a safe haven and reminds readers that it is about perception and personal interpretation. When analyzing the poem and only considering the text, there is a dark picture painted. However, when readers begin to use their own inferences, the poem is given a different tone and purpose. The poem enables readers to create their own ideas of death and…

    • 1712 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Analysis of Emily Dickinson's Because I Could Not Stop for Death
    • 1279 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Analysis of Emily Dickinson's Because I Could Not Stop for Death

    Collamer M Abbott. The Explicator. Washington: Spring 2000.Vol. 58, Iss. 3; pg. 140, 4 pgs…

    • 1279 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Emily Dickinson Diction
    • 429 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Emily Dickinson Diction

    There is a multitude of poems written with the theme of death, be it in a positive light or negative. Some poets write poems that depict Death as a spine-chilling inevitable end, others hold respect for this natural occurrence. In Emily Dickinson’s poem “Because I could not stop for Death”, diction and personification is utilized to demonstrate the speaker’s cordial friendship with Death.…

    • 429 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Emily Dickinson's "Because I Could Not Stop for Death"
    • 933 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Emily Dickinson's "Because I Could Not Stop for Death"

    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…

    • 933 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The Influences Behind Emily Dickinson's Work
    • 76 Words
    • 1 Page

    The Influences Behind Emily Dickinson's Work

    Emily Dickinson, though an inspired and dedicated writer, was not even slightly recognized for this by anyone outside of her small circle of confidants and family. Extensively reclusive, Dickinson’s poetry only left this circle when it was published apparently without her permission, and these unwanted publications further fueled her repulsion for having her work shared. The influences behind Emily Dickinson’s work will be thoroughly explored and picked apart, including “Because I could not stop for Death”.…

    • 76 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Miss
    • 1104 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Miss

    Death is a key theme in much of Dickinson's poetry. It is explored in depth in poems 'Because I Could Not Stop for Death' (712) and 'I heard a fly buzz' (465). 712 dramatises the conflict between a life and the peaceful eternity of death. Her close focus on death in these poems allows the reader to see death from different perspectives, in 712 death is almost portrayed as a welcoming gentlemen yet in 465 death appears to be an uncomfortable and almost claustrophobic experience.…

    • 1104 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Stop For Death Personification
    • 794 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Stop For Death Personification

    The brilliant uses of imagery, personification, and symbolism in Emily Dickinson’s “Because I could not stop for death” reveal that death is not the end, but only the beginning of an eternity. Through Dickinson’s use of imagery, she successfully paints the different scenes with descriptive language and metaphors to allow the reader to get a deeper sense of the mood and what the poem is conveying. Using personification as one of the most important tools of literature in the poem, the author creates a unique view on the experience of death, painting it into a more pleasant light. Lastly, though Dickinson’s use of symbolism, she bestows many representations and symbols that help to strongly portray her underlying truth on the subject of death.…

    • 794 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Emily Dickinson Research Paper
    • 246 Words
    • 1 Page

    Emily Dickinson Research Paper

    Emily Dickinson is one of the famous and fabulous female poets in the world. Her poems, for all their innovative brilliance, are nonetheless outpourings of her private feelings. And just like her great masterpieces, her enigmatic character will never fall into oblivion. Emily Dickinson’s poetry has been the focus of researchers, such as nature ,love and death. But one fourth of her poetry is about the theme of death. Obviously, death is her most beloving theme of her poems. Death is always the endearing topic of many artists and philosophers. While in Emily's eyes, death is different from others. In her eyes, death is not dead, death is beautiful , fantastic and mystical which most of us couldn't understand and imagine. So we want to probe…

    • 246 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Because I Could Not Stop For Death By Emily Dickinson
    • 878 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Because I Could Not Stop For Death By Emily Dickinson

    The poem “Because I could not stop for Death” was written by Emily Dickinson in the 1800’s. She was born in Amherst, Massachusetts on December 10th 1830 where she passed away at on May 15th 1886; she was 55 years of age when she died. Dickinson’s poems were influenced Metaphysical poets of seventeenth-century England. When Emily died she left behind forty hand bound volumes with about 1,800 poems in it. Her first poem was not published until in 1890 which was four years after she was deceased and the last was published in 1955.…

    • 878 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More