First Death in Nova Scotia

“I Felt a Funeral, in My Brain” by Emily Dickinson (1896)

The canonized 19th-century American poet Emily Dickinson also presents death as eerie and jarring. As with Bishop’s poem, death is an isolated, unfeeling experience. The mourners in Dickinson’s poem are not warm but oppressive, and Dickinson’s speaker experiences death on their own. After they confront death, they reveal that they’re “[f]inished knowing” (Line 20). Yet the speaker doesn’t clarify what they know. As with Bishop’s poem, Dickinson’s poem suggests that death is not easily understood. Even if someone experiences death—as Dickinson’s speaker seemingly does—what they went through isn’t communicable to the living reader.

“The Rites for Cousin Vit” by Gwyndelon Brooks (1949)

Bishop’s speaker injects life into their cousin Arthur. In a similar vein, 20th-century American poet Gwendolyn Brooks undercuts norms and brings back the titular Cousin Vit. After going along with the funeral, Vit rises out of her coffin and returns to her sensuous life. While Bishop’s poem about death stays stark and cold, Brooks undercuts death’s iciness by detailing Vit’s pleasurable life. Unlike Arthur, Vit had palpable fun. Brooks establishes a playful, melodious tone that counters Bishop’s atonal, dispassionate voice.

“The Shampoo” by Elizabeth Bishop (1955)