Symbolism in "Because I could not stop for Death".
"Because I could not stop for death" by Emily Dickinson, is a poem that you really have to read deep into to get any meaning of it. If you just look at the surface of the poem then it is going to be meaning less and confusing because of Dickinson's style of writing. Dickinson often uses dashes in her writing, as if she is not finished with the sentence. Her style of writing adds a uniqueness to poetry like no other. This poem by Dickinson is one big metaphor in itself. Dickinson is comparing death to a suitor who is calling on a Lady.
In the first two lines, Death, is compared to a carriage driver, that stops for one who could not stop for him. The word "kindly" is particularly meaningful, for it instantly characterizes Death. This comes as a shock to most readers because normally people think as death as grim and terrible. The third and fourth lines, "The Carriage held but just Ourselves--- And Immortality," explain the situation that is happening. Death obviously has another passenger, Immortality. Immortality, standing alone helps to emphasize the importance of the presence of the second passenger. In these first four lines of the poem, Dickinson has introduced the principal characters metaphorically comparing death to this suitor picking up a lady in a carriage.
The next two lines, "We slowly drove----He knew no haste, And I had put away My Labor and my leisure too, For His Civility----," adds the idea of the politeness and kindliness of the driver. "Slowly drove," "knew no haste," and "For his Civility" further characterizes the polite, kindly driver. These lines are basically saying that she who has not been able to stop for death is now so completely captivated by his personality that she has put away everything that had occupied her before his coming. The third stanza in this poem is another metaphor in itself comparing mortality to "grain," and immortality to "gazing.
