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The Poems of Emily Dickinson
Emily Dickinson poetry
The Poems of Emily Dickinson
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More handpicked essays just for you.
The Poems of Emily Dickinson
Emily Dickinson poetry
The Poems of Emily Dickinson
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
{I can’t think of a dang introduction sentence for the life of me. Good thing this is a rough draft]. Together with four classmates in my English class, I created an anthology of five poems on the theme of death. The authors within the anthology include Bill Knott, Dusan “Charles” Simic, Donald Justice, Edna St. Vincent Millay, and Kathleen Ossip. My favorite poem in the anthology is “Eyes Fastened With Pins” by Dusan “Charles” Simic, as it is well written, with the use of rhetorical devices and personal experience, to ultimately convey his belief that death is inevitable, no more or less special for anyone in particular.
Bryant also explains how death is feared by many but he offers comfort to the people that do fear it. Bryant tells the readers about death in a way no poet has said before. Bryant gradually tells the reader more and more about death in each stanza. In “Thanatopsis,” Bryant uses diction to describe death, details to describe how death takes place, and organization to help show the different levels of how people feel about death.
The inevitable truth that death is inescapably waiting for us is a universal theme of life, and different perceptions of it can be viewed throughout literature. Two authors exploring this concept are Edgar Allen Poe and William Cullen Bryant, whose works delve into the existentially ominous anticipation people experience leading up to their death. Whereas Poe illustrates a fearful and disturbing build-up, Bryant provides a more comforting view. Bryant’s “Thanatopsis” shares a consoling view of death through the symbolism of the sun, representing that despite the sadness and grief that comes with death, your soul will continue to live on, just as the sun continues to shine on even through the clouds.
The inevitability of death is something we all fear. It’s something that’s always in the back of our minds, and is believed by many to be the most terrifying and lonely aspect of nature. In the poem Thanatopsis (1817) by William Cullen Bryant, death is depicted as something comforting and natural. Bryant brings comfort by comparing it to sleeping on a bed and points out that you're put to rest in the same dirt the rest of humanity is, eliminating the common fear of being alone for all eternity. Similarly, in the song Live Like You Were Dying (2004) by Tim McGraw, the person being described is living his life to the fullest after being diagnosed with a disease set to kill him.
Death Mortality comes in various types of forms. Each individual at some point in their life has to deal with death, whether it is welcomed or not. In “The Story of an Hour”, by Kate Chopin, “A Good Man is Hard to Find”, by Flannery O’ Connor, “Death Be Not Proud” by John Donne, and “Trifles” by Susan Glaspell. Each one of the stories represent death in some type of way, they each have to face the mortality to life whether it be from fear, or murder.
The latter is quite different however, where the title is more of a line taken from the poem itself but nevertheless suggests some kind of advice of not treating the night within one’s comfort zone. It is important to know that when one speaks about the topic of death, it is almost also expected to talk about life. Both poems, as seen in their tone, share three important ideas on the subject of life and death. First is the acceptance of the inevitable death, second is living life to the hilt, and finally, death being wasted on the good. The first important point is that death cannot be escaped, it is one of the common denominators between mortals.
Death is inevitable. For some, obsessing over not knowing when and where it might occur can often drive them to insanity. However, for others, it is simply a transition into a more perfect eternal life. John Keats and Henry Longfellow portray the concept of dying in two distinct perspectives in their poems “When I Have Fears” and “Mezzo Cammin.” Despite differing viewpoints, they use techniques such as verse, verse form and language to portray the same theme: Death will occur at an unknown time and how a person chooses to cope will impact the rest of one’s life.
Dickinson romanticized death, showing no fear whilst Poe had a more candid tone. To illustrate, “We passed the Fields of Gazing Grain – / We passed the Setting Sun –” (Dickinson, “Because I could not stop for death” 11-12) in contrast to, “The mimes become its food, / And seraphs sob at vermin fangs / In human gore imbued” (Poe, “The Conqueror Worm” 30-32). Dickinson’s lines seem to be light hearted when dealing with death as she is lead to the after-life, to her it was more of a trip down memory lane. On the other hand, Poe described a scene of death in which it isn’t happy.
Death is welcomed by some, wanting the pain to be done. Some find it mercy, others call it cowardly. Death is diverse, across many plains death traverses. Death happens every day, death happens in different ways. Death is feared and death is revered.
Emily Dickinson had multiple views on death. At first she was in love with the peaceful, gentle side of death, but that all changed when she lost her everything, her parents to death. The significance is that Romanticism is a diverse thing and it can be shaped a formed to the writers likings, but it will only have an effect if the reader interprets the poem in the same
Death is part of the everyday life and always will be. In the poems by Blue Oyster Cult “Don’t Fear The Reaper”, Kansas “Dust In The Wind”, and William Cullen Bryant “Thanatopsis” they all discuss death. Even if the three poems are about death, they all imply different meanings. While all three poems are all about death, they all have a different point.
In the poem “Because I could not stop for death” by Emily Dickinson, death is described as a person, and the narrator is communicating her journey with death in the afterlife. During the journey the speaker describes death as a person to accompany her during this journey. Using symbolism to show three locations that are important part of our lives. The speaker also uses imagery to show why death isn 't’ so scary.
In both poems, he uses alliteration to overcome his fears by realizing the unimportance of eternity and fame. Thus, by using the same poetic devices, he ultimately expresses his fear of the inevitable death
If I had to choose a poem from the cluster of “A Journey to Death” I would select “Because I could not stop for Death” by Emily Dickinson. The retirement homes are designed for old age people and to me this poem completely relates to them in the sense that they should not be afraid of dying in other words they should be ready for death. “Because I could not stop for Death- / He kindly stopped for me-” (1-2) these are very strong lines expressing irony, a person who does not leave his duties as if he was always worried about what is happening to his surroundings and death comes for him kindly, releasing him from stress and worries. “And I had put away /
Death brings forth thoughts of loss, grief, anger, or fear. People tend to think of Death as a sly snake stealing away loved ones. However, American-Romantic poets William Cullen Bryant and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, seem to think differently. They both see death as a normal aspect of life. In the poem“Thanatopsis”, written by William Bryant, he portrays death not like the mysterious shadow that should be feared but the calming embrace of Nature.