Emily Dickinson Death and Dying
...cuts to the heart of the matter. She does not know what happens to the soul after death except for the hope of a peaceful afterlife in heaven. The pain, however, of losing a friend is all the pain anyone would ever want to associate with hell. She explains that not much is known about death, but what is known is not assuring either way. In poem 1078, Dickinson speaks of lost love through the hands of death. She writes: The Sweeping up the Heart And putting love away We shall not want to use again Until eternity Here Dickinson shows how she will not love again after death, but hopefully in the bliss of eternal death she would find love again. Thus, she bottles up all her emotions and keeps her wants and desires to herself. Dickinson remains in this state all the way to her death, never marrying. This is also a type of vow that is taken at marriage, which could also be another meaning to the poem. In the next selection, Dickinson explains how some people gain a dose of life from the death of another. A Death blow is a Life blow to Some Who till they died, did not alive become- Who had they lived, had died but when They died, Vitality begun. This view shows how some people might realize just how short life really is by having someone die. Dickinson believes life is a precious thing and should not be taken for granted since it is never known what could happen from day to day. It is very much like the phrase, "Here one minute, gone the next." Dickinson also uses this view of death in poem 1100. The last Night that She lived It was a Common Night Except the Dying- this to Us Made Nature different We noticed small things- Things overlooked before By this great light upon our Minds Italicized- as 'twere. Here Dickinson shows how small things were now italicized, rather they stood out unlike they had before, as if their minds were more aware of their surroundings. In poem 478, Dickinson describes how life is too short to hate. She writes ...