Emily Dickinson

’s "Because I could not stop for Death" is a remarkable masterpiece that
exercises thought between the known and the unknown. Critics call ’s
poem a masterpiece with strange "haunting power." In Dickinson’s poem, "Because I
could not stop for Death," there is much impression in the tone, in symbols, and in the
use of imagery that exudes creativity.
One might undoubtedly agree to an 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 ...

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—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 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. Shaw as follows:
"School, where children strove"(9) may represent childhood; "Fields of Gazing
Grain"(11), maturity; and "Setting Sun" (12) old age" (21). In addition to these three
stages, the final stage of eternity was symbolized in the last two lines of the poem, the
"Horses Heads" (23), leading "towards Eternity" (24). Dickinson fathomed the
incomprehensible progression of life by unraveling its complexity with figurative
symbols.
Emily Dickinson dresses the scene such that mental pictures of sight, feeling, and sound
come to life. The imagery begins the moment Dickinson invites Her reader into ...

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Emily Dickinson. (2004, July 9). Retrieved August 17, 2018, from http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Emily-Dickinson/10785

"Emily Dickinson." Essayworld.com. Essayworld.com, 9 Jul. 2004. Web. 17 Aug. 2018. <http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Emily-Dickinson/10785>

"Emily Dickinson." Essayworld.com. July 9, 2004. Accessed August 17, 2018. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Emily-Dickinson/10785.

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PAPER DETAILS

Added: 7/9/2004 11:31:11 PM
Category: English
Type: Premium Paper
Words: 878
Pages: 4

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