When Death Comes Emily Dickinson Analysis

Words: 1701

Pages: 7

Open Document

Emily Dickinson’s “Because I could not stop for Death” is an interesting poem that focuses on a calming image of death. Mary Oliver’s “When Death Comes,” is focused on living life to the fullest till death comes. The speaker in both poems are different in times of life. Both poems have a theme of death, but they both view death in a more optimistic way. Emily Dickson’s poem has a more calming tone. Mary Oliver’s poem starts with a more scared tone, which turns into an inspiring tone. Imagery shown in Emily Dickson’s poem is a combination of Christian and gothic imagery. Mary Oliver uses imagery to show how scary death can be, how beautiful life is, and how to live life to the fullest. Emily Dickson’s and Mary Oliver’s poems use certain speaker viewpoints, tones, and imagery to emphasize their view on death. In Emily Dickinson’s poem the speaker is showing a view point of already being dead. The speaker says “Because I could not stop for Death- He kindly stopped for me” (1-2). Showing the speaker has already passed away and death is stopping for her. This helps the reader know from the very beginning that the speaker is talking from a view after death has occurred. In Mary Oliver’s poem the speaker is alive but is taking about when death comes. “When death comes like …show more content…
At the start of the poem the speaker describes,” When death comes like the hungry bear in autumn” (1-2). This is explaining death as an animal that is hungry, showing the speaker is afraid of death. The speaker also states “When death comes, like the measles-pox” (5-6). Showing death as a deadly disease to try to avoid. She also states, “when death comes and takes all the bright coins from his purse to buy me, and snaps the purse shut” (3-4). She is explaining death as something that comes to claim its next victim, then snaps its purse shut and takes its victim away from life. Then moves right on to the next

Emily Dickinson's If You Were Coming In The Fall

the most influential is Emily Dickinson. However; the mass majority of her poems were not published until after her death. Many of these poems have mesmerized the people who read them at what she could actually be writing about because of her use of different tones and moods. One of the most famous of her poems is called ¨If You Were Coming in the Fall¨ because of her distinctive use of different poetic devices. The poem “If You Were Coming in the Fall” by Emily Dickinson is about love and shows…

Words 1184 - Pages 5

Taking Off Emily Dickinson's Clothes Analysis

In the poem “Taking off Emily Dickinson’s Clothes”, Billy Collins divulges how he came to understand Emily Dickinson through her poems he studied. He begins the poem out by using an extended metaphor which compares the reading of an Emily Dickinson’s poem to the undressing of a 19th century Victorian lady. A Victorian era lady was notorious for having many complicated step in order to get out of her daytime dress. In the first stanza, he takes off “her tippet made of tulle” (line 1), or her shawl…

Words 624 - Pages 3

EBC Poem Analysis Essays

Ranae Bonillas ELA Honors Per. 3 Ms. Pusey 6 October 2014 Dickinson and Frost Poem Analysis Essay "Let life be as beautiful as summer flowers, And death as beautiful as autumn leaves.", as Rabindranath Tagore says. Tagore uses symbolism and similes to convey that life should be beautiful and lived to the fullest, while death should still be beautiful yet, not as bright and joyful as life. To be, or not to be accepted. Symbolism, personification…

Words 643 - Pages 3

Emily Dickinson Mortality

What would you do if death came knocking on your doorstep? Would you run or take his hand? Emily Dickinson’s poem “Because I could not stop for Death” illustrates an encounter with the reaper. Using personification, Emily Dickinson brings to life death as a human being and forces the readers to reflect on everyday life as if it was their last day alive. The theme of mortality is prevalent throughout the poem as it is embodied through the character of death, the narrator, the carriage ride, the house…

Words 1228 - Pages 5

Couldn T Stop For Death Essay

Couldn’t Stop For Death http://www.cummingsstudyguides.net/Guides2/Dickinson.html http://www.shmoop.com/because-i-could-not-stop-for-death/stanza-6-summary.html http://www.english.illinois.edu/maps/poets/a_f/dickinson/712.htm Notes Death is personified as a gentleman caller or suitor. Thomas H. Johnson calls him "one of the great characters of literature." But exactly what kind of person is he? Is Death a kind, polite suitor? The speaker refers to his "kindness" and "civility." The drive symbolizes her…

Words 3726 - Pages 15

Minister's Black Veil Literary Analysis

American Romanticism: Literary Analysis of the Minister's Black Veil This essay discusses the American Romanticism that can be found within the Minister's Black Veil, as well as analyzing and going into further detail about this short story. I will analyze certain aspects of the story, dig deeper into a profound level of analysis of the main character, as well as list the common attributes that one might find in this type of writing that was composed in this time period. The American Romanticism…

Words 1673 - Pages 7

Department of English Spring 2014 Course Descriptions Essays

Department of English Spring 2014 Course Descriptions 89S. Imagining War. Instructor M. Maiwald. WF 8:30-9:45 In this course, we will consider how the experience of war has been represented in American fiction, non-fiction, and film. We will investigate how attitudes toward war have evolved throughout American history: our timeline begins with the Civil War—the traumatic event that birthed the modern American state—and ends with the recent conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq. In particular…

Words 9501 - Pages 39