First of all, and most noticeable, is the continual use of dashes, which adds a lingering essence, as if foreshadowing the death. The dashes also signify power and unanswered questions about death and, perhaps, whether or not an afterlife exists. Another aspect of the form is how it is broken up into stanzas expressing differing ideas in each one. By braking up such ideas, it is easier to analyze the varying aspects of death that Ms. Dickinson believes are imperative when expressing what she is feeling prior to her death.

The first stanza starts off repeating the title, “I heard a Fly buzz—when I died�

This last line could mean many things. First of all, she “could not see” because of the fly, and therefore she could not “see” (understand). But what can she not see? What is to come of her? It goes unanswered, but this open-ended conclusion exemplifies the importance of sight. Also, by ending with this line, the image of “eyes” discussed in the second stanza is re-emphasized.

Overall this poem is derisive towards death, which is actually a time when one reminisces about the past and questions the future. The reason this statement has validity is because Ms. Dickinson is consumed by the fly, be it the buzzing or by watching it. The presence of people being with her, her personal pondering about what life after death may be like and soul searching are all over-looked because she is so focused on the fly. The fly, therefore, deviates her thought process and death becomes no longer just an ending, but ending with nothing in “sight”.

The final, fourth stanza, intertwines all of the previous stanzas. It begins, “With Blue- - uncertain stumbling Buzz” (13) where the use of the word “blue” implies a smoothness, or rather calmness, prior to the end. More interestingly, as the stanza continues the readers uncover the purpose of the fly. “Between the light – and me-/ And then the Windows failed—and then/ I

Some topics in this essay:
Ms Dickinson, Emily Dickinson, , ms dickinson, fly fly, heard fly, “i heard fly, purpose fly, seeing light, “could see”, death stanza, third stanza, fourth stanza, final moments,