Summary:
In this poem by Emily Dickinson, in the first stanza we find that death is personified, death has been given human attributes. Death is personified as a gentleman or a suitor calling on a young lady.
In this poem by Emily Dickinson, in the first stanza we find that death is personified, death has been given human attributes. Death is personified as a gentleman or a suitor calling on a young lady. This seems to say that the young lady has a date with death. This is shown in lines 1 and 2, "Because I could not stop for death, / He kindly stopped for me." The poet gives death the character traits of being kind, seen in line two. It even seems that the woman is somewhat flattered in the kind nature of her suitor.
In lines 3 and 4, "The carriage held but just ourselves / And Immortality." These lines give us the impression that 'Immortality' is the chaperon for this two, the lady and the gentleman. The poem written in the 19th century shows us what the norm is; that is it would be very unbecoming for a young man and lady to be alone without a chaperone.
The second stanza, line 5 "We slowly drove, he knew no haste." Death has no concept of time, this is an earthly concern. This Drive could also symbolize that the young woman is slowly dying or perhaps even is already dead and in a coffin moving slowly at the speed of a funeral procession.
Lines 6 and 8, "And I had put away my labor and my leisure too, / For his civility" People are too busy with their own lives to think about death. The poet however, sets aside all her on goings to go with death. She then proceeds to comment once again on death's good manners. This is the second time that she comments on his manners. This comes as a surprise, because we often consider death as grim and is almost never welcome by human beings.
In the third stanza, lines 9 through 12, the poet speaks of the things that they passed as they drove. "We passed the school, where children strove/ at recess- in the ring." This symbolizes childhood. "We passed the Fields of Gazing Grain." This could symbolize maturation just as the ripening of the grain. "We passed the setting sun" This symbolizes old age. This stanza signifies the stages of life, the progression from childhood through death. Perhaps, it could also be that she now that she is dying she is now more aware of her surroundings more than ever before. Notice how the word 'passed' is repeated in the stanza. It conveys the feeling of being outside time.
Fourth stanza, the speaker suggests that they did not pass the sun but rather passed them. Lines 13, "Or rather, he passed us." Once again we find that death has no concept of time. The sun indicates our earthly concept of time; at the beginning of the day, it rises and in the evening, it sets. Line 14 through 15, "The dews drew quivering and chill/ For only Gossamer, my Gown/ My Tippet-only Tulle-." According to the dictionary, gossamer is a very light thin cloth, tulle is a thin fine netting used for veils and scarves while tippet is a covering for the shoulders. The speaker says that she is getting cold, this suggests that the speaker is dead.
Lines 17 through 20, "We paused before a house that seemed/ a swelling of the ground-"The roof was scarcely visible-/ The Cornice-In the ground-." The 'house' symbolizes the grave. The speaker perhaps calls it a 'house' because this is where her body will be housed or will stay for eternity. The speaker describes the 'house' as a swelling of the ground, clearly giving us a picture of a fresh burial ground. We note that the speaker does not say how long that they 'paused' at this house.
The last stanza, lines 21and 22 "Since then- 'tis centuries- and yet/ feels shorter than the Day." Exaggeration is clearly used as centuries can never be longer than a day. We sometimes feel that some moments are somewhat longer than the actual time frame that they actually occur. This is what maybe the speaker experiences in her last moment in this time related world; and to her this moment seems to last forever. It is as if she gets a revelation. The final two lines, "I first surmised the horses' Heads /Were toward Eternity-." The speaker guesses that the carriage is now heading to their final destination, towards eternity.
This is the complete article, containing 731 words
(approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page).
