Emily Dickinson's "Because I Could Not Stop for Death" actually mirrors her own life. Emily never had her happy ending nor was she ever able to share her life with someone. I believe that she gave up on love at some point during her life time after she allowed herself to open up and got her heart broken by Charles Wadsworth. It seemed like she truly admired him despite the fact that he was married. I think that this poem is a great example that proves this point. Dickinson sounds very resentful and bitter, she also seems to have a guard up. From this poem, it sounds like Dickinson just wants to be alone and that no one is good enough for her. The poem has a very bitter tone. Dickinson met Wadsworth (who was a married reverend) in Philadelphia. (sparknotes.com 1). "He was an arresting figure and Dickinson deeply admired him. Most scholars agree that Wadsworth was the man Dickinson fell in love with, and the man who inspired much of her love poetry." (sparknotes.com 1). When Wadsworth notified Dickinson that he was moving to San Francisco, she immediately suffered a nervous breakdown for a week which almost made her lose her eyesight. She also had a portrait of him hanging in her room (sparknotes.com 1). To me, this is obvious proof that she suffered from a broken heart after feeling abandoned by Wadsworth, which lead her to writing poems such as this. In "Because I Could Not Stop for Death", death is being personified as a man. An example that reflects on her own life in the poem is when she says "Because I could not stop for Death, He kindly stopped for me; The carriage held but just ourselves And immortality." (1-4). I think that Emily is saying that she can't wait for a soul mate any longer, she finally wants someone to care for her the way she cared for Wadsworth. Also, when she says "For only gossamer my gown.." (15). It almost seems as though she feels pity for herself. I think she is talking about being buried in the kind of wedding dress that she never got a chance to where during her life time. This poem really mirrors the lonely and sad life Dickinson lived.
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