Because I Could Not Stop for Death

Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 1890

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Related Poems

“Grief” by Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1844)

British poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning, who lived from 1806 to 1861, was one of Emily Dickinson’s favorite writers. Browning’s sonnet, “Grief,” resembles the subject matter of Dickinson’s “Because I could not stop for Death,” although Browning’s maintains a more solemn, formal tone.

“I felt a Funeral, in my Brain” by Emily Dickinson (1861)

Like “Because I could not stop for Death,” Emily Dickinson’s “I felt a Funeral, in my Brain” deals with death. Both works also show off Dickinson’s gift for compressing meaning into brief, powerful lines and her frequent use of dashes. However, “I felt a Funeral, in my Brain” uses a funeral as an extended metaphor for a radical transformation in the speaker’s mind.

“O Me! O Life!” by Walt Whitman

Walt Whitman, who lived from 1819 to 1892, was Emily Dickinson’s contemporary and the other great American poet of the 19th century. Although the two poets shared certain literary influences and lived through the Civil War, their styles and interests often differ widely. In this poem, Whitman uses his typically long, unrhymed lines and impassioned tone to consider the difficulties and joys of existence.

“Taking off Emily Dickinson’s Clothes” by Billy Collins (2000)

Billy Collins is a popular contemporary poet and former United States Poet Laureate. His poem, “Taking off Emily Dickinson’s Clothes,” appeared in his 2000 collection of the same name. This irreverent depiction of Dickinson mentions the tulle tippet that appears in “Because I could not stop for Death” and imagines how Dickinson would behave during a sexual encounter.

Further Literary Resources

“Emily Dickinson and the creative ‘solitude of space’” by Magdalena Ostas, Ph.D (2022)

In this article, UC-Berkeley professor Magdalena Ostas examines how Dickinson’s poetry reveals her internal world and her inner experiences. Full of biographical detail and excerpts from many of Dickinson’s poems, the article illuminates the ways in which Dickinson weaves together the themes of isolation and contemplation in her body of work.

“Why moody teenagers love Emily Dickinson” by Hephzibah Anderson (2017)

This article appeared on the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) website in March of 2017, shortly after the release of A Quiet Passion, a film by Terence Davies about the life of Emily Dickinson (see film review below). Anderson takes a closer look at Dickinson’s life, describing the ways in which the mythology surrounding the poet has led some readers and scholars to make incorrect assumptions about her personality and her experiences.

“A Quiet Passion is a Biopic Told With Poetic Scope” by David Sims (2017)

In this review of the Terence Davies film, The Atlantic culture staff writer David Sims lauds the film’s success in depicting Emily Dickinson’s emotional life. In the review, Sims describes the efforts of the filmmaker to capture the poet’s “spirit” on film rather than attempt to bring to life the specifics of the poet’s existence.