The fly and 465
Emily Dickinson in her poem #465, covers the subject of death in a way that I have not seen before. She delves right into the last sounds she heard when the narrator died, which was a fly buzzing. The last actions of this world are concluded by the assigning of "keepsakes", the last few tears while waiting "the King". And now, in the midst of this silence, Emily chooses to introduce the buzzing of a fly. This common household pest's incessant buzz becomes all the dying can hear. The fly is a significant part of the poem and in this essay, I will give examples as to why and how. I think the fly has special significance in the poem. Beelzebub was often portrayed as a fly: Lord of the Flies, and there is a strange tone about this poem, as though the dying person is a controller, an organizer, a cold person in fact, her last steps towards death were so calculated, “The Eyes around-had wrung them dry-/And Breaths were Gathering firm/ for the last Onset-when the King/Be witnessed-in the Room.”(ln 5-8). She is waiting for King (God) to come and take her to the after life. She has calculated death, then this pest “interposes” itself , “Between the light and me”(ln14) her peacef
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Some common words found in the essay are:
King God, Emily Dickinson, Lord Flies, Onset-when King/Be, Geoff Eng, Breaths Gathering, dying person, storm clouds, emily dickinson, moment vision, buzzing fly, dickinson wrote, waiting king, common household,
Approximate Word count = 969
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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