How use of Tone, Imagery & Form in Emily Dickersons poems help to Research Paper

How use of Tone, Imagery & Form in Emily Dickersons poems help to represent her feelings about life & death - Research Paper Example What critics might interpret as depression, Dickinson intended it to be wise insight. The tone of â€Å"Because I Could Not Stop for Death† wavers between serenity and longing. As the protagonist of the poem is led away into death, which is symbolized by the carriage passing by the school and fields, there is a sense of calm and peace, almost relaxation. The protagonist is not only accepting that her death is taking place, but she is almost welcoming of it. â€Å"We slowly drove, he knew no haste, And I had put away My labor, and my leisure too (Dickinson & Vendler 42).† Though Death is the one driving slowly, the protagonist is still sitting back and allowing the journey to happen. Similarly, even though the protagonist was unable to stop for death, when death stopped for her she did not try to fight against it. However, as they passed the school and fields, a sense of longing took over as the protagonist realized all of the life that she was leaving behind her.  "We passed the school, where children strove [...], We passed the fields of grazing grain, we passed the setting sun. Or, according to Emily Dickinson and Helen Vendler (42), Death passed the protagonist (Dickinson & Vendler 42).† The protagonist included herself among those that Death was passing, revealing that she was not quite ready to go. As such, Dickinson may have been ready to accept death, but she was unable to completely let go of life. â€Å"I Felt a Funeral in My Brain† conveys the tones of aloneness and terror. Even though the poem immediately reveals that there are mourners present at this faux-funeral, the protagonist admits to feeling alone. â€Å"And I, and Silence, some some strange Race, Wrecked, solitary, here (Dickinson 97).† Since this poem discusses both death and life, there is an admittance to aloneness in both states (Farr 76). In death, the protagonist will have no one; in life, they had no one. It is in this way that Dickinson shows th ere is no difference between death and life. The tone of terror is also sensed as the protagonist descends into madness, which is what she meant by â€Å"I felt a funeral in my brain (Dickinson 97).† The protagonist is not really dying, but she is slipping into madness, and the journey is terrifying to her. Through this poem, it is revealed that life is lonely and terrifying, and death is the same way, especially because they are both being undergone alone. Despite the amount of company, life and death are independent matters. Emily Dickinson used imagery in her poems to bring new life to her own feelings. In â€Å"Because I Could Not Stop for Death,† death is personified as a man or a suitor. Instead of the cliche grim reaper, Death is a civilized, welcoming man (Raina 11). The protagonist feels no fear accepting the ride from him, which shows how she does not fear death. Furthermore, the carriage ride displays the journey from life to death. Carriages are often conne cted with royalty or pleasant outings, and this was the method of transportation for death instead of a hearse, making it a comfortable ride to death (Baker 215). The house that the carriage arrives at represents the final resting place of the protagonist. Rather than a coffin or even a mausoleum, Dickinson picks a place that signifies warmth and comfort. All of these images provide a very calming experience of death as opposed to the horrid depictions