<P> Because I could not stop for Death--He kindly stopped for me--The Carriage held but just Ourselves--And Immortality . We slowly drove--He knew no haste And I had put away My labor and my leisure too, For His Civility--We passed the School, where Children strove At Recess--in the Ring--We passed the Fields of Gazing Grain--We passed the Setting Sun--Or rather--He passed Us--The Dews drew quivering and Chill--For only Gossamer, my Gown--My Tippet--only Tulle--We paused before a House that seemed A Swelling of the Ground--The Roof was scarcely visible--The Cornice--in the Ground--Since then --' tis Centuries--and yet Feels shorter than the Day I first surmised the Horses' Heads Were toward Eternity--</P> <P> THE CHARIOT Because I could not stop for Death, He kindly stopped for me; The carriage held but just ourselves And Immortality . We slowly drove, he knew no haste, And I had put away My labor, and my leisure too, For his civility . We passed the school where children played, Their lessons scarcely done; We passed the fields of gazing grain, We passed the setting sun . We paused before a house that seemed A swelling of the ground; The roof was scarcely visible, The cornice but a mound . Since then' tis centuries; but each Feels shorter than the day I first surmised the horses' heads Were toward eternity . </P> <P> In 1936 Allen Tate wrote, "(The poem) exemplifies better than anything else (Dickinson) wrote the special quality of her mind...If the word great means anything in poetry, this poem is one of the greatest in the English language; it is flawless to the last detail . The rhythm charges with movement the pattern of suspended action back of the poem . Every image is precise and, moreover, not merely beautiful, but inextricably fused with the central idea . Every image extends and intensifies every other...No poet could have invented the elements of (this poem); only a great poet could have used them so perfectly . Miss Dickinson was a deep mind writing from a deep culture, and when she came to poetry, she came infallibly ." </P> <P> The poem has been set to music by Aaron Copland as the twelfth song of his song cycle Twelve Poems of Emily Dickinson . And again, by John Adams as the second movement of his choral symphony Harmonium, and also set to music by Nicholas J. White as a single movement piece for chorus and chamber orchestra . Natalie Merchant and Susan McKeown have created a song of the same name while preserving Dickinson's exact poem in its lyrics . </P>

Dickenson because i could not stop for death