Consider Dickinson’s uses of literary devices such as irony, imagery, and metaphors.
Emily Dickinson writes the first poem about one’s path to death. One reaches eternity by walking through the “forest.” The “forest of the dead” is imagery used to help the audience visualize a purgatory-like state where one meets their fate (62).
The poem “Hope is the thing…” uses an extended metaphor to compare hope to a bird. The bird is “heard [in] the most chill land” and “never stops” (314). Just like the bird, even in the strongest obstacle, hope cannot dissipate.
Dickinson personifies Death in “Because I could not stop for Death…” to have Death viewed in a new light. Death is not meant to be terrifying but rather peaceful. “Death – He kindly stopped for me” (712). Here, she personifies death amicably. At first, the poem is written as if she had recently passed away. Ironically, at the end of the poem, she describes a century as a day to indicate that she has been dead longer than the audience originally thinks.
Merlyn, I really like the examples you employed in this post, especially this line: “heard [in] the most chill land.” When I first read this poem, I was surprised to see the line “Because I could not stop for Death…”
I agree with your point because Dickinson definitely went beyond the standard norm and opened a new door for the public to explore. She wanted people to understand that death is a natural phenomenon and we shouldn’t be overwhelmed by the concept of death. Your post is well written, but I would like to see your view on how an individual’s life experience can be connected to the irony, imagery, and metaphors Dickinson used in her poem.
– Yuki (Enid) Zheng
Prefer name: Yuki
Hi Merlyn,
Your examples of irony, imagery, and metaphors are very detailed, and it caused me to reread the poem. I really love and agree with your explanation about the metaphor comparing hope and the bird. I feel like that part of the poem is so inspirational that readers should adapt to the idea in their own life, allowing the poem to motivate them when they are facing challenges.