Poetic Perceptions of Death Essay

In literature, themes shape and characterize an author’s writing making each work unique as different points of view are expressed within a writing’s words and sentences. This is the case, for example, of Edgar Allan Poe’s poem “Annabel Lee” and Emily Dickinson’s poem “Because I could not stop for Death.” Both poems focus on the same theme of death, but while Poe’s poem reflects that death is an atrocious event because of the suffering and struggle that it provokes, Dickinson’s poem reflects that death is humane and that it should not be feared as it is inevitable. The two poems have both similarities and differences, and the themes and characteristics of each poem can be explained by the author’s influences and lives.

The themes of loneliness, exile and escape from reality are important aspects that characterize the works of Alfred Lord Tennyson. During the 1800s, these aspects differentiated him from other Victorian poets, distinguishing him as one of the most popular poets of the Victorian era. In Tennyson's poems Mariana, and The Lady of Shalott, the artists express loneliness in their isolation from the rest of the world. The following essay will compare and contrast the displays of temporary and permanent loneliness of these artists through Tennyson's use of imagery, repetition, and word painting.

Two literary pieces, “Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night” by, Dylan Thomas and “Because I Could Not Stop for Death” by, Emily Dickinson are both poems that discuss the topic of death. While there are some similarities and comparisons between the two poems, when it comes to the themes, both poets writing styles are quite different from one another which makes each poem unique. Thomas and Dickinson both use identical figurative language devices and other literature symbolisms as they explain their main themes which contrasts the differences to the concept of death. These distinct variations between poems are apparent in both the form, and how the choice of words is used in the poems. Both of the authors have presented two very different ideas on death. The poems are well distinguished literature devices, they share minor similarities and differences between each other and how they present the meaning of death to a toll.

Regardless of race, caste, religion, or age, every human has wondered about the one fact of life that unifies us all: What is death? Both poems, “Death of a Young Son by Drowning” by Margaret Atwood and “Because I could Not Stop for Death” by Emily Dickinson share a common subject of death. Using figurative language, both poems illustrate distinct takes on a similar topic.

Tennyson uses the poetic form of ballad which shows that Tennyson is trying to tell a story. The first three stanzas shows that the troops are approaching the guns and the last three shows the retreat. From the starting of the poem Tennyson try’s to create an exciting mood for the reader shown by this quote, “Half a league, half a league, Half a league onward,”. This gains the attention of the reader and forces the reader to reader more. On the other hand Armitage’s structure shows the skyscrapers with the long lines when put horizontally.

This poem is written in ballad form which is odd because one would think of a ballad and think a love story or an author gushing on about nature not an allegory about personified Death. Dickinson both unites and contrasts love/courtship with death, experimenting with both reader’s expectations and the poetic convention dictating specific poem form. This is why Dickinson is widely hailed because of her unconventional writing methods.

“To An Athlete Dying Young” by A.E. Houseman and “Crossing The Bar” by Alfred, Lord Tennyson are poems that very similar to each other yet so different. “To An Athlete Dying Young” is about an athlete who dies young and Houseman congratulates him because people will remember him forever. “Crossing the Bar” is about Tennyson realizing that he is about to die and he accepts his fate. Both poems have a similar theme of death. Both authors make clever uses of symbols such as, in “To An Athlete Dying Young,” Tennyson uses a laurel plant, and a rose plant to symbolize the athlete’s accomplishments. In “Crossing the Bar”, Tennyson uses the sandbar to symbolize the crossing over. However, the rhyme scheme of these poems is different. Houseman

Furthermore Tennyson uses old fashioned language as he says ‘half a league’. A league is an old measurement to measure distance. He uses this to make it sound as if he is writing the poem at the time of the charge. As he uses that style you feel like you are there at

Tennyson’s Idylls of the King passage on page 226 lines 607-620 is full of beautiful imagery created through his manipulation of words. He creates a picture in our minds with phrases such as, “black, mute midsummer night” (line 607) and “fuming Sulphur blue and

Emily Dickinson is one of the most popular American poets of all time. Her poetry is seen as intense and passionate. Several of her many poems seem to be devoted to death and sadness. No one seems to know the exact connections between actual events in her life and the poetry that she wrote. The reader can see vivid images of Dickinson's ideas of death in several of her poems. Dickinson's use of imagery and symbolism are apparent in several of her death poems, especially in these three: "I Felt a Funeral in My Brain," "I Heard a Fly Buzz-When I Died," and "Because I Could Not Stop for Death."

Throughout the poem, Tennyson continues to describe the “Valley of death” (Tennyson 7) that the soldiers marched into. By continuing to stress the horrific scenes of the charge it emphasizes the strength and bravery the

The flow of the poem was very melodic and smooth,and the poem itself was easy to follow. Appreciating the depressing ending is not difficult, but truly understanding the message Tennyson aimed for is harder.Lancelot was a jerk who did not take responsibility for his part in the lady’s death. This was the first poem that I truly understood, thanks to the flow and Lancelot’s lack of

“I heard a Fly buzz” by Emily Dickinson, “Because I could not stop for Death” also by Dickinson, and “Death, be not proud” by John Donne all exhibit the unifying theme of death in its various stages. In the first poem, Emily Dickinson wrote from the perspective of a dead person looking back at what happened before their death. Further, in Dickinson’s second poem, she wrote from the perspective of someone on their journey when death came to claim them. Lastly, John Donne wrote a poem directly addressing Death and Death’s pride, and he later conveyed his hope after death in eternal life. In Dickinson’s two poems she focuses on the process of death and dying.

Robert Browning and Alfred Lord Tennyson are celebrated authors and poets in the field of field of literature. A deeper analysis of some of their works displays particular similarities and distinct differences that make each one of them unique. For instance, Browning’s My Last Duchess and Tennyson’s Ulysses show similarities in the overall theme, death, but each brings it out in different styles. This essay explains the comparison of the two poems in detail and the respective significance of use of stylistic devices.

Ben Jonson brings forth a memorable poem he has written in memoir to his beloved son, whom he lost at a young age. He begins this poem with a goodbye, which entitles him to feel responsible in some way towards this son’s death. The speaker in this poem seems to be Johnson himself, considering his writing is deep and truthful which connects to his own feelings. The form of the poem is written in iambic pentameter, as a farewell to his beloved young son who died of a bubonic plague. Jonson 's poem reaches new levels as he prepares himself to create a poem off his track of style, however, through love, envy and mourning, the author comes to a satisfying conclusion that he will no longer fall in love with something so fragile.