Death Be Not Proud And I Heard A Fly Buzz

Of all the poems we read this semester, three of them shared a similar theme. These three poems are “Death, be not proud” by John Donne, “Because I could not stop for Death” by Emily Dickinson, and “I heard a Fly buzz – when I died” by Emily Dickinson. All three of these poems focus on death, and often personify it. What really brings all three of these poems together, however, is the fact that all three say that death is not the end of everything. In fact, they all insinuate that death is just the beginning of another eternal life, just as God tells us in the Bible. “Death, be not proud,” “Because I could not stop for Death,” and “I heard a Fly buzz – when I died” all share the common theme of death and what occurs during it and afterwards. The first poem, “Death, be not proud,” goes over the interactions between the author and a personified death. John Donne criticizes death and declares that death itself will die. The theme of this poem lies in its name. Death should not feel proud, since it is not as mighty or dreadful as it seems. Death represents the ends of our physical life, and the beginning of our eternal spiritual life. This poem beats death down while also addressing why people give it so much power of them. The poem concludes with the statement that death shall die, and in fact, death has already been

The character in this poem, presumably author Emily Dickinson, says she cannot stop for death so instead he stops for her. She takes a carriage ride with him and Immortality, travelling slowly past many landmarks. Such landmarks include, a school, a field, and a house. Each of these locations represents a different aspect of death. For example, the house was symbolic of her coffin. The poem ends with the woman experiencing eternity after death. Much like the previous poem, this poem addresses death and what comes after, and how death is not