Insanity In Emily Dickinson's I Felt A Funeral, In My Brain

Insanity is described as a, “Severe mental illness” that clouds the brain with a false reality(MeriamWebsterDictionary). In order to effectively illustrate an insane character an author must use detail and figurative language. Author of “A Tale Tell Heart”, Edgar Allen Poe reflects insanity by using a variety of literary devices. Emily Dickinson also uses figurative language and literary devices to show insanity in her piece “I Felt a Funeral, in my brain”. Although, both authors use similar ways to show insanity, Poe most effectively displays insanity within the narrator of the story.

For instance, Poe uses imagery and symbolism to describe the eye of the old man. In the story the eye can be described as an, “eye of a vulture—a pale blue

The narrator in the text “I Felt a Funeral, in my Brain” describes her mental state as, “my mind was growing numb /… and I dropped down” (Dickinson 8, 18). The narrator’s state of mind is described by Dickinson in a way that shows it falling or in other words losing sight of reality. Through a variety of symbols in Dickinson poem it is to be assumed that the narrator is insane. Yet, even though Dickinson shown the state of mind of the narrator, she doesn’t necessarily the state of mind as clear as Poe. Insanity can often be mistaken for depression in Emily Dickinson’s poem “I Felt a Funeral, in my Brain”. In the beginning of the text the narrator states, “but why will you say I am mad”(Poe1). Poe decides to have the narrator consistently refer back to the narrator stating that he isn’t mad. In addition the narrator states, “If you think me mad, you will think know longer when I describe the wise precautions I took for the concealment of the body”(Poe3). Since, Poe uses these literary devices make the narrator feel self-accusation. By using repetition and literary irony Poe creates an insane character. What is even more insane is the fact that the narrator doesn’t believe that precautions he took to conceal a body is something an insane person would say. Although,