Essay about Whitman vs. Dickinson - 759 Words

Whitman vs. Dickinson Death; termination of vital existence; passing away of the physical state. Dying comes along with a pool of emotions that writers have many times tried to explain. Emily Dickinson and Walt Whitman were two pioneer poets from the Romantic Era, that introduced new, freer styles of writing to modern poetry at the time. Both Whitman and Dickinson have similar ideas in their writing, but each has a unique touch of expression in their works. Both poets have portrayed death in their poetry as a relief, a salvation, or escape to a better place- another life. They have formulated death as a positive yet ambiguous state. In Dickinsons Narrow Fellow in the Grass and Whitmans Wound-Dresser, there exists a link†¦show more content†¦Whitman also describes death in a very delicate manner, which allows the reader to feel that death is in a way, good. For instance, he describes the soldiers as noisy in war, but when they die, there is silence. Silence resembles death, yet its not a negative way of expressing it. As the poet encounters with more memories of suffering, he calls to death: Come sweet death! be persuaded O beautiful death!/ In mercy come quickly (lines 44-45). He believes death will alleviate the pains and that it is good. Another delicate way of describing death, and an excellent choice of words, is when he says he recalls the experience (as) sweet and sad (line 63) These young soldiers have so much life ahead of them and they are dying, this makes it sad. Yet since they are suffering so much, its sweet that they die. In this particular poem, Whitman portrays an attitude of positive welcoming of death. The positive outlook that Whitman portrays towards death in his poem the Wound-Dresser, is similarly shown in Emily Dickinsons Narrow Fellow in the Grass. She tells a simple story with impressive word choices that allow for deep interpretation and symbolism. Her poem narrates the story of a dead man laying on the ground that looks as if the Grass divides as with a comb- (line 5). He (meaning the dead man) likes Boggy Acre/ A Floor too cool for Corn- (lines 9-10). Notice as she uses the word likes as if the dead man still lived or had feelings towards theShow MoreRelated Dickinson vs Whitman Essay611 Words   |  3 PagesDickinson vs Whitman Two Poets, Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson are probably two of the most influential people in American poetry. They are regarded as the founders modern American poetry. Walt Whitman (1819-1892), for the time was breaking new ground with his diverse, energetic verse with regards to subject matter, form and style whether talking about overlooked objects in nature such as a single blade of grass or even our own hearing. Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) while living a life ofRead More Dickinson Vs. 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