DEATH AND IMMORTALITY

Death is one of the repeated themes in poetry. In the field of American poetry, Emily
Dickinson is one of the leading exponents of Death’s theme. It is a central motivating force
which is portrayed by Dickinson in a realistic manner and free from sentimentalism. Fear of
death is natural enough because it bears testimony to the universal love of life and death is
the most formidable enemy of love. Death is the gateway to Immortality. Some of
Dickinson’s poems of Death become tool to lead in the next level of the experience after
Death; that is Immortality or eternal life. However, Dickinson’s belief in Immortality is not
free from doubts. Sometimes, she has freely expressed Immortality with the clear imagination
but sometimes she denies the idea about Immortality.

Related to Death, Dickinson usually personifies Death to make it real for the reader.
One of her personifications of Death is someone who arrives on a ‘Chariot’:

Unmoved – she notes the Chariot – pausing

At her low Gate –

Unmoved – and Emperor be kneeling

Upon her mat

Actually, the above poem is about selection and seclusion. The poet intends to choose her
companion and excludes everyone else from her inner consciousness. She is on her way to
her own isolation. Then, Dickinson presents Death as the one who tries to disturb her from
her meditation. Death appears on a ‘Chariot’; a royal carriage with two wheels that was
pulled by horses or a light four-wheeled pleasure. Moreover, she brings up ‘Emperor’ also
who assumed as ‘Christ’ and drives the ‘Chariot’. He tries to persuades and fascinate her by
his appearance. However, although they may be able to bring her with them, they cannot
bother her from her way of isolation, her stillness. At the end, she finds her companion that is
her own soul to accompany her with a complete rejection of the rest of the world. The
appearance of Death as ‘Chariot’ here is a superlative achievement wherein death becomes
one of the greatest characters of literature.

Dickinson readily accepts death without any resentment or protest. In fact, through
one of her poems, he portrays the experience of a dying man:

I heard a fly buzz – when I died –

The Stillness of the Room

Was like the Stillness in the Air

Between the Heaves of Storm –

Dickinson presents her imaginative power and her keen observation of what happens to the
dying man. She imagines the sensation and the physical experience of the dying man in apt
and clear way. However, the Death-room stillness differs from what the man hears. The
different tension is established by the contrast between the inertness of the dead man with the
movement of the living and the external growth of Nature. The belief that Death leads to
eternal happiness seems to be contradicted by the appearance the fly at the grand moment
which is experienced by the dying man. He finds the mourners in a sorrow and deep grief.
These spectators have come to see the last dying moment of the departing soul for its
heavenly journey. It is where the ‘King’ which presumably as ‘Death’ or ‘Christ’ who has
come to welcome the man. Here, Dickinson also dramatizes the sensation of dying, the
response of the mourner, the death-like silent room, so on and so forth. Through this poem,
Dickinson not only asserts that Death is a sacred experience but also in some ways it is a
disruptive moment. The disruptive moment here presents as the denial argument to
Immortality. There is no immortality after death. Death is only an experience of the soul
departure without any destination to the eternal life. It affirms at the last line ‘I could not see
to see’, that the man emphasizes he cannot find anything after the Death takes him away.

In contrast to her concept of Death, Emily Dickinson’s concept of immortality is

undoubtedly ambivalent. She affirms it sometimes. But, sometimes she also denies the
concept of immortality. In the poem ‘I Heard a Fly Buzz – When I Died’, she expresses that
Death is not an abstract concept but it is a concrete concept of reality. She imagines and
pictures how Death comes to take his soul but she denies the concept of eternal life or
immortality after Death.

Dickinson’s doubt of Immortality is written in her poem:

I’m glad I don’t believe it…….

Here, she explains her denial to the concept of Immortality. She does not feel any regret for
having no faith of Immortality. She is happy for losing all faith of Immortality. She prefers to
live longer in the Earth because it satisfied her creative urge. For her, it is the real heavenly
life to live. Dickinson claims that the idea of life after Death is beyond the reach of limited
human imagination. Furthermore, eternity is a place where time and space cease any
conclusive proof. This is one of her ambivalent response related to the concept of
Immortality.

Then, Dickinson introduces the concept of immortality which follows the death in
another poem:

Because I could not stop for Death;

He kindly stopped for me;

The carriage held but just ourselves

And Immortality

In fact, nobody has the time to think about death in the life. However, it does not mean that
man can escape from Death. It is real and living presence. Dickinson personified Death in
this poem. It is presented in a realistic manner. Death is personified as a ‘gentleman caller’
who is known for his remarkable civility. Furthermore, Death also explains as a gate that
ushers the speaker to eternity. Both death and immortality appear as companions in this
poem. They are personified as two gentlemen that accompanied the speaker in the carriage
where Death is occupying the driver of the carriage. They ride the carriage together; the
speaker, Death and Immortality; to eternal life.

We slowly drove - ……..

The carriage is on the way. It was a last Ride Together so that they drove slowly and feel
completely at ease. The speaker has to leave her worldly activities to accompany Death and
Immortality on their journey. It means that all the activities of the speaker come to the end at
the time when Death arrives. Death, as the lover, stops her politely to take her with him.
Therefore, the speaker puts the work aside and joins to the carriage with Death and
Immortality to the spiritual journey.

We passed the school …….

Or rather ………

Here, the spiritual journey describes clearly and in concrete terms. Death brings the speaker
to look back to her past times. These stanzas unfold the journey of the speaker’s life; it was
during her childhood, youth and before Death’s arrival. Then, the speaker realizes that the
journey of life finally leads to the end. It brings her to Death. And it continues to the next
level of journey. It is the journey to Immortality.

We paused before a House that seemed

A Swelling of the Ground –

The Roof was scarcely visible –

The Cornice – in the Ground –

Since then – ‘tis Centuries – and yet

Feels shorter than the Day

I first surmised the Horses’ Heads

Were toward Eternity –

The last two stanzas of the poem lead to the final identification of her “House” which is like a
bump on the ground and hardly visible. Now, all the motion and actions stop. She recalls the
last objects before her eyes during the journey. Here, we realize that Death appears as a
person who had reached into background after leading the poet to the Immortality. In this
poem, every image is delicate, not very beautiful but fused with the central idea. Dickinson
presents the view of Death and Immortality which reach artistic perfection.

Dickinson brings up her concept about Immortality which accompanies Death in the
following poem:

The last Night that She lived…..

We noticed smallest things ……

This poem may be the most powerful Death poem of Dickinson. It is because she shows
Death as a part of life and it is linked with the speaker’s fate. The experience of Death
appears as the opening of the poem. Here, the poem begins with the last night story of the
women when Death comes. Death’s arrival tries to disturb the common night of that woman.
But, it is failed. For the woman, her last night was a common night. Death neither makes it
special nor horrible. However, the commonplace experience of Death seems to be different
for the spectators. It is because they have to confront with the Nature’s fury and indifference
after Death. They will begin to see even the smallest things which they never seen before
Death’s arrival. Everything seems to be clear in the state of heightened awareness. Indeed,
Death makes life mysterious and precious.

She mentioned and forgot ……

Death is the end of the pains and sufferings of life which leads us to the next eternal life and
salvation. This stanza shows how the dying woman is not going to put any resistance to delay
the Death’s arrival. She accepts it as a natural process of life. However, it can be seen that the
acceptance of the woman is contradicted to the spectators to let her die. No matter how hard
they try to refuse, Death is coming. And, Death reminds the human being that they will
continue to face pains and suffering until they depart from the life. But, it does not stop there.
It further shows that death is a graceful departure into the sublime water of Immortality.

And We – We placed the Hair……..

The last stanza of the poem deals with the final phase of the burial ceremony. The woman
finally accepts her natural process of life. People cannot delay Death. It is a part of life and
the fate link of Death is never terminated. Here, the spectators who are the mourners give the
last respect to the woman. Although it is difficult moment for them, they realize that the fear
of Death seems to be illogic then. It is because they find that a dead person is luckier than the
living because she now gets rid of all struggle of faith. And she is now on her journey to the
eternal life and salvation.

Dickinson was a seeker after truth and in proving the mystery of Death. She realizes
that the existence of human being is subjected to. Life is a temporary and short-lived as the
bubble of the water and fast-disappearing stars of early morning. From all over them, Death
is final and faithful companion. But, Immortality is still an ambivalent for her. Sometimes she
accepts the concept but also refutes it sometimes. However, in her belief of Immortality, it
needs Death as a transitional phase to bring someone from mortality to Immortality.

REFERENCES

Tandon, N., & Trevedi, A. (2008). Thematic Patterns of Emily Dickinson’s Poetry. Delhi:
Nice Printing Press.

Sen, S. (2009). Emily Dickinon Selected Poems. Delhi: Unique Publishers.