Classic English Literature Analytical essay

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Emily Dickinson: I felt a funeral in my head analysis
The poet uses a rhythm that mirrors the hymns of a church. Dickinson uses rhyming quatrains that possess a regular rhythm. The rhyme scheme in the poem follows a specific pattern. For example, the fourth and second line in each stanza show some rhyming and that creates some form of rhythm. However, the last stanza does not adopt the pattern mentioned above. At that point, the poem reaches a climax and Dickinson seems to emphasize how things fall apart. The author also uses other words that sound similar but lack a similar rhyme. For instance, in the first stanza, the poet uses “fro” and through” (Levine et al. 98). The mix of sounds creates a unique rhythm to the whole piece.
The poet applies dashes in most lines of the poem. The dashes show pauses and seek to regulate the speed of the readers. Dickinson also uses the punctuations to emphasize specific activities and create vivid images. For instance, in line three of the first stanza, she highlights “kept treading-treading-till it seemed” (Levine et al. 98). The dashes describe the repetitive actions of the individuals in a few words.
Dickinson seems to use metaphors in her poem. Dickinson states that her mind feels like a funeral. She seems to indicate a funeral procession that has filled her attention. The whole work seems to project a Christian burial that takes place (Levine et al. 98). The movement of the Mourners “to and fro,” seems to show an actual event and the lack of the use of the words “like” in the poem eliminate the possibility of the poet using the funeral as a simile.

The poem shows the typical Christian funeral events. The sounds made by the bells and the movement of the attendants reflects on the programs of that time (Levine et al. 98). The burial described shows how the Protestant churches like that of Dickinson’s hometown of Massachusetts conducted the ritual.
Works Cited
Robert S. Levine, Elliot A. Michael, Gustafson M. Sandra, Hungerford, A., and Loeffelholz, M., eds. The Norton Anthology of American Literature: Ninth International Student Edition. WW Norton & Company, 2017.