Because I Could Not Stop for Death
Emily Dickinson
Because I could not stop for Death--
He kindly stopped for me--
The Carriage held but just Ourselves--
And Immortality.
We slowly drove--He knew no haste
And I had put away
My labour and my leisure too,
For His Civility--
We passed the School, where Children strove
At Recess--in the Ring--
We passed the Fields of Gazing Grain--
We passed the Setting Sun--
Or rather--He passed Us--
The Dews drew quivering and chill--
For only Gossamer, my Gown--
My Tippet--only Tulle--
We paused before a House that seemed
A Swelling of the Ground--
The Roof was scarcely visible--
The Cornice--in the Ground--
Since then--'tis Centuries--and yet
Feels shorter than the Day
I first surmised the Horses Heads
Were toward Eternity--
Making Meanings
Poems by Emily Dickinson
Because I could not stop for Death
1. If you were going to personify Death, would Death be like the person
described in this poem? Why or why not?
2. Can you paraphrase the first two lines in a way that emphasizes their irony?
What word in line 2 tells you that the tone is ironic?
3. In stanza 2, civility means “politeness.” How does this kind of behavior on
the part of Death and the speaker extend the irony of the first stanza?
4. What three things do the riders pass in stanza 3? What is significant about
the fact that the sun passes the carriage in stanzas 4–5, and about the nature
of the change in temperature? Be sure to review your reading notes.
5. Stanza 5 is a riddle in itself. What is the nearly buried house?
6. Do you think the concluding stanza introduces a tone of terror, because the
speaker has suddenly realized she will ride on forever, conscious of being dead?
Or is the poem really an expression of trust and even triumph? Explain your
response.
Choices
1. Collecting Ideas for a Comparison/Contrast Essay
One interesting topic for a comparison/contrast essay would be an examination of how one of Emily Dickinson's poems compares with a poem by an earlier poet - perhaps "Huswifery" by Taylor, "Upon the Burning of Our House" by Gradstreet, or "Thanatopsis" by William Cullen Bryant. Take notes on how one of these poems compares with one of Dickinson's poems.
2. Echoes of Dickinson
Write a poem that treats one of the themes that engaged Emily Dickinson: love and loss, the spiritual life, death and immortality, nature, or the power of the imagination. You might even use one of Dickinson's lines as your opener. Experiment with metaphors, similes, and slant rhymes. Try out Dickinson's style of punctuation and capitalization, or invent your own unique style.
3. Hymn to Her
Dickinson let the strict meters she found in her hymnbook provide the basic beat for her poems, but the variations she introduced gave her poems subtlety and prevented monotony. In a brief essay, analyze at least two of her poems to show how she uses this traditional hymn meter:
8 syllables in line 1
8 syllables in line 3
6 syllables in line 2
6 syllables in line 4
Then show how she also uses a short hymn meter of 6, 6, 8, and 6 syllables. To see how closely some of the poems conform to a hymn meter, you might try singing "If you were coming to the Fall" to the tune of "O God, Our Help in Ages Past."
4. Dickinson Onstage
Prepare a script for a performance called "An Evening with Emily Dickinson." In the script, let Dickinson tell about her life, her views of poetry and language ,and her feelings about nature, faith, and eternity. Include in your performance readings of selected poems.
5. Book of Poems
Dickinson sewed the final copies of her poems into the form of small booklets. To make your own small book, fold four pages of white paper in half. Then, gather them at the fold, which will give you sixteen pages. Select poems you would like to reproduce - either your own, or some favorite poems by Dickinson or by other poems. On the first page, design a book cover including a title. Then, copy one poem onto each the remaining pages. Try to match your penmanship or calligraphy with the feelings conveyed in the poems. Finally, sew your book along the fold.