At least on the surface level of Emily Dickinson's famous poem "Because I Could Not Stop for Death," the poem includes a personified death that contradicts her classic cliché of terror educational entity in American literature, especially at that time. After meeting Death, the narrator proceeds on a journey with him and Immortality to spend the narrator's supposed last day visiting several places. The poem ends on a cliffhanger with the narrator stating that the carriage ride was an eternity ago. “Why couldn't I stop for death” can represent an infinite number of topics regarding death and what comes after. Despite the almost limitless interpretations, readers often choose to classify the poem one of two ways: as a comforting vision of death and the afterlife or as an ironic, even devious, plethora of darker undertones meant to confuse the reader's mind. Say no to plagiarism. . Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original EssayThe beginning of the poem appears similar to other writers of the time considering that the narrator "could not stop for death" (Levine, et al 101). In fact, without reading further, the reader might assume that she feared Death, which would explain why she wouldn't stop for him. However, the second line reveals that Death “kindly” stopped for the narrator (Levine, et al. 101). At this point, Dickinson shows that the narrator's relationship with Death moves away from the more conventional interactions involving him. It becomes evident that the narrator does not fear Death and that, in turn, he behaves towards him as a courteous gentleman. The term "gentle" seems ironic when comparing Death to his more traditional roles as an evil entity who takes what he wants, without any regard for the outcome of what he does. Next, the reader learns that the narrator, Death, and the ever-silent Immortality accompany each other in a carriage. This carriage represents the journey to the afterlife. Which begs the question: if Death chose to leave her there, would she have to wander aimlessly, between worlds, for the rest of eternity? This could indicate why he sees Death as benevolent. Unhurried death could be interpreted in various ways (Levine, et al. 101). It could have a literal meaning and simply imply that he didn't feel rushed to go somewhere else. Yet, numerous people die every minute, so why shouldn't he rush to take care of them? Does this suggest that Death cannot abide by the same rules of time that all humans endure? Otherwise, this could have a representational meaning and refer to a hearse carrying his body to a cemetery. Next, we find that the narrator has “set aside” his “work, and […] even leisure, for his civilization” (Levine, et al. 101). The above sentence could mean that he ignored his duties and the things he cares about to give Death his undivided attention. Even if the poem lacks a reason why he would do so. Vibrant images that begin to influence the audience's interpretation of the poem saturate the entirety of stanza three. The first two lines may reflect the narrator's childhood, when she played with her friends. Dickinson's choice to use the word “children” instead of pupils or students could support this interpretation (Levine, et al. 101). However, the phrase could also indicate the concepts of youth, innocence and knowledge. Many Romantic and pre-Romantic writers, poems, and books with which Dickinson would have been familiar, often used children,.