Dickinson Ideas on Immortality and Life after Death
Emily Dickinson, in her work collaboration of poems, compiled in "The Poemsof Emily Dickinson" explores metaphors concentrating on many recurringthemes including that of immortality. Immortality is not necessarilydescribed by Dickinson, as a state of life that never dies, but ratherimmortality is expressed as a state of continuous birth, death and rebirth. Immortality is also discussed as a state of existing in the hereafter, orin Heaven by the poet. Throughout her poems, Dickinson seems to be at acrossroads regarding the idea of immortality; a majority of her poemsexpress a desire to reach the everlasting hereafter, yet Dickinson seemssomewhat uncertain that such a state actually exists.In her open ended poem, "Because I could not stop for death" EmilyDickinson explores the idea of immortality. After discussing scenes thatpass through various stages in the day, the author concludes that in factcenturies have past, and states regarding time: "Feels shorter than theDay/I first surmised the Horses Heads/Were toward Eternity" (Eberwein, 14). The author seems to; in this instance affirm the possibility ofimmortality. Dickinson in fact suggests sharing a carriage with death and
She briefly reflects in the middle of the poem, that perhapsJesus doesn't know which house to go to, a reflection perhaps of fleetingfears that there is no everlasting light. " Some animosity or perhaps frustration isalso expressed here, where Dickinson claims that the Conjuror "that spurnedus-yesterday. She conjectures that one can perhaps never be certain ofimmortality, but man can always aspire to it. Her religious convictionsare evident in a majority of the poems she writes that deal with therecurrent themes of death and consequently, immortality. Some other poems thatexplore the idea of immortality are "I never saw a moor" and "Adrift! Alittle boat adrift" where she discusses a belief in resurrection and afeeling of respect toward the existence in an afterlife (Ford, 21). This concern is much alleviatedhowever, in the last stanza. Dickinson portraysdeath as a natural and comfortable process in the poem, and also emphasizesthat it is not necessarily the last stop on the journey of existence. She seems non-committal at times, waffling between accepting the notionthat death is the end, and at other times supporting the idea that there isimmortality, or a chance for rebirth. Death isdescribed as a last trip down the road to eternity. It seemsthat this whimsical attitude of God is also prevalent in her notions ofimmortality, as evidenced also by her comments regarding the"Conjurer" mentioned previous. The wonders of heaven are described asthe "Enamored-of the Conjuror. "Charles Anderson wrote that "death and immortality were the two profoundestthemes" that challenged Dickinson (Ford, 17). Dickinson seemedto work out her concerns regarding the prospect of immortality in herpoems. The possibility of life after death, a concept related to immortality, isdiscussed in the work, "Dying! Dying in the night!" Here Dickinson beginsby stating, "Won't somebody bring the light/so I can see which was togo/into the everlasting snow'" This stanza clearly shows the authorlooking for someone to guide them into the "light" which one may assume isthe eternal light of "everlasting" life, as evidenced by the last line inthe stanza. Many of her poems discuss moving onin heaven, or being reborn.
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