Summary of the poem ‘If I Should Die’ by Emily Dickinson [Theme and analysis]

In the poem ‘If I Should Die’ the poet Emily Dickinson talks about natural ending of human beings i.e. death. She presents pessimistic view about death and says that natural phenomenon continues even after somebody's death.

About the poet Emily Dickinson

Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) is one of America's greatest and most original poets of all time. Emily Elizabeth Dickinson was an American poet who wrote nearly 1800 poems but only 7 were published when she was alive. She is obsessed with death so most of her poem is related to death. She also has written poems without a title.

She is best known for her unique style and innovative use of punctuation and capitalization in her poetry. At the time of her birth, her father was an ambitious young lawyer. To make the abstract tangible, to define meaning without confining it, to inhabit a house that never became a prison, she created in her writing a distinctively elliptical language for expressing what was possible but not yet realized. Although she was a major

American poet, she was not accorded this honor until well after her death. She wrote 18,00 poems in her lifetime, but only seven were published during her lifetime and virtually none were published as originally written until the mid-1950s. Her odd punctuation, capitalization, and formatting did not meet standard publishing approval for earlier editions.

About the poem ‘If I Should Die’

The poem "If I Should Die" reflects how natural things will keep going after the poet has passed because they, like her death, are part of the circle of life. She cleverly uses the natural human aspects of life to show readers that life goes on after her passing. The poem consists of two parts. The first part concerns the circle of life and addresses the natural aspect of life and the second part addresses the human aspect.

The natural aspect is very peaceful but the human aspect is more buzzing with energy. Her death is not the end but rather new and exciting. Her life ends but another begins. This poem expresses the idea that everything goes on after her death as usual.

Short Summary of the poem ‘If I Should Die’

This is a short poem written in 18 lines in a single stanza. Which was written in 1860 and published in 1891. This poem has no regular rhyme. This poem tells about how life will go on even after someone's death. The speaker of this poem is the poet herself.

Themes in the poem ‘If I Should Die’

•  Life
• Death
• Mystery

Detailed Summary of the poem ‘If I Should Die’ by Emily Dickinson

The death of one individual does not matter life is for the living. So, time keeps flowing incessantly and every element of nature keeps its schedule. Birds continue to make a nest and bees don't stop humming. The survivors of the world are business-like.

The last four lines assure us that the awareness of the changes experiences serene tranquility (the quality or state of being tranquil; calm). This poem consists of two-part regarding the circle of life: the first part reveals the natural aspect of life as a very peaceful part. The second part is about the human aspect with bustling energy.

If I should die is written to support the poet's idea that death should no longer be something one fears and that it should be looked at positively. We can't fight death not escape from it. She wrote this poem from her personal experience and many health problems where she was almost to death countless times. She wanted to tell her loved ones to keep the world going the same way it was before she passes away.