Breakdown of Because I Could Not Essay

Essay #1: Dickenson, Because I Could Not 565

As I read Because I Could Not by Emily Dickenson I was extremely confused because when I first read the title I said to myself okay a confusing poem about sad love but as I read the first stanza I said to myself this has NOTHING to do with love, but yet still confusing I tried breaking down each line, looking up unfamiliar words, and reading aloud about 10 times and still no clarity came to mind. Finally I read it once more to my roommate and BOOM! It hit me. The first stanza of Because I Could Not is about a journey to death. Its describing the process of human life and how Dickenson finally encountered death. With the help of narrative codes and my procedures in breaking down the poem, I was able to understand Because I Could Not much more clearly than when I first read it.

The first line, Because I could not stop for Death, (1) really puzzled me as I began to read this poem. Then Dickenson says, He kindly stopped for me, (2) which personifies death. The third line states the word carriage, which is where Dickenson used a connotative code. As I read the poem and I went back to break down the fist stanza carriage didnt seem to fit in as just a regular carriage or vehicle. Carriage means the kind of vehicle that people use to escort coffins to funerals, a hearse. In the first stanza another code being used is the antithetical code with the expressions Death and Immortality. Both words are the only capitalized words besides the first words of the lines. I felt that Dickenson was trying to put an emphasis on these words by doing so. The antithetical code is obviously being used here since death means the end to life and immortality means an endless life, hence why theyre opposite. Also in this stanza another connotative code is used for Immortality. Since Dickenson and Death are in the carriage it seems like Immortality is just another person coming along for the ride.

In the second stanza, Dickenson writes about her and Death taking a drive. Though she doesnt actually state the word drive, she is utilizing a connotative code because the drive signifies her leaving her life behind. The seventh line states an antithetical code using the words labor and leisure. Yes both expressions have to do with what human beings do throughout life which is work hard and rest.

The third stanza continues the use of connotative codes because the author speaks of children and gazing grain which indicate the human life in progress. We all begin as children growing up in school and then we enter adulthood and pretty much were working for the rest of our lives. When I saw the grazing grain (11) remark it reminded me of hard working farm workers, hence why this signifies hard work in a humans life. The setting sun in line 16 was the last stage of life the carriage passes before encountering death. The setting of the sun shows the stage of death with the decreasing movement and upcoming darkness.

Stanza four had a lot of words that I did not understand until I used a dictionary which then made me realize all the codes being used. The use of the cultural code is used in the transition from stanza three to four because the warmth of the sun signifies life and the coldness in line 14 signifies death. The transformation in atmosphere between the third and fourth stanza from warmth to damp and cold is shown by utilizing an antithetical code for dews and quivering and chill (14). Also this stanza describes how death took over the speakers whole image with the use of connotative codes. A gown is an elegant dress women use for special occasions but as Dickenson encountered death her gown grows gossamer which are cobwebs. Also her scarf, or tippet, turns into a veil which women use to cover their faces.

Dickenson continues her poem and describes a house they stopped at during her journey. This whole stanza uses connotative codes to describe a grave. The word ground in line 18 is what draws me to think that she is not referring to an actual house, but to a grave. The roof was scarcely visible (19), actually means the tombstone of the grave since it is the equivalent of a roof to a house but instead for a grave.

The last stanza Dickenson changes from past tense to present with the verb feels. Antithetical codes are continued to be used with the words centuries and day (21-22). Then in the following lines the speaker isnt sure if the horses are actually heading toward eternity, I first surmised the horses heads were heading eternity (23-24). I feel that Dickenson used a cultural code here to point out that the speaker has experienced life but what does she really know about death? Nothing, since she hasnt experienced it, so she has to guess that the horses are taking her to eternity.