EMILY DICKINSON
‘I Felt a Funeral, in My Brain’
BIOGRAPHY
• An American poet born in 1830 in
Massachusetts. Her family was
wealthy. She lived a very reclusive
life, hardly ever leaving the house
and meeting people. She wrote
almost 1,800 poems, although less
than a dozen were published in her
lifetime. Her poetic style is very
distinctive. She uses short lines
and unusual punctuation, often
using dashes instead of commas or
full stops. Many of her poems deal
with death and mental suffering.
She died in 1886.
I felt a Funeral, in my Brain
I felt a Funeral, in my Brain,
And Mourners to and fro
Kept treading - treading - till it seemed
That Sense was breaking through -
And when they all were seated,
A Service, like a Drum Kept beating - beating - till I thought
My mind was going numb And then I heard them lift a Box
And creak across my Soul
With those same Boots of Lead, again,
Then Space - began to toll,
As all the Heavens were a Bell,
And Being, but an Ear,
And I, and Silence, some strange Race,
Wrecked, solitary, here And then a Plank in Reason, broke,
And I dropped down, and down And hit a World, at every plunge,
And Finished knowing - then -
FIRST READING:
1. What do you think the poet means when she says she ‘felt
a funeral’ in her brain?
2. Read the first two stanzas. How do we know the poet is
suffering?
3. The first three stanzas describe a funeral service. What
aspects of the service are described in each stanza?
4. In the third stanza the mourners begin to move again. This
time they are wearing ‘boots of lead’. What does this
image suggest to you?
5. The fourth stanza contains some rather strange images.
What do you think is happening to the poet here?
6. Something breaks in the final stanza and the poet is sent
plunging downwards. What do you think she means when
she says a ‘plank in reason broke’? What do you think
happens to the poet at the end of the poem?
I felt a Funeral, in my Brain
I felt a Funeral, in my Brain,
And Mourners to and fro
Kept treading - treading - till it seemed
That Sense was breaking through And when they all were seated,
A Service, like a Drum Kept beating - beating - till I thought
My mind was going numb -
And then I heard them lift a Box
And creak across my Soul
With those same Boots of Lead, again,
Then Space - began to toll,
As all the Heavens were a Bell,
And Being, but an Ear,
And I, and Silence, some strange Race,
Wrecked, solitary, here And then a Plank in Reason, broke,
And I dropped down, and down And hit a World, at every plunge,
And Finished knowing - then -
This is an unusual
statement. It suggests that
something unpleasant is
happening to the speaker.
It is likely that she is
describing intense mental
suffering and compares
this to a funeral.
The first three stanzas of
the poem follow the
progression of a funeral,
which the speaker says
is occurring in her brain.
In the second half of the
poem everything becomes
very strange. The poet’s
world no longer seems
normal. We might guess
that she has suffered some
kind of mental breakdown,
and no longer has a sane
grip on reality.
I felt a Funeral, in my Brain
I felt a Funeral, in my Brain,
And Mourners to and fro
Kept treading - treading - till it seemed
That Sense was breaking through And when they all were seated,
A Service, like a Drum Kept beating - beating - till I thought
My mind was going numb -
And then I heard them lift a Box
And creak across my Soul
With those same Boots of Lead, again,
Then Space - began to toll,
As all the Heavens were a Bell,
And Being, but an Ear,
And I, and Silence, some strange Race,
Wrecked, solitary, here And then a Plank in Reason, broke,
And I dropped down, and down And hit a World, at every plunge,
And Finished knowing - then -
Her mind is crowded and she feels
the sensation of the mourners
continuously moving back and forth
Is she on the verge of understanding
something or about to break under
the pressure of the mourners feet?
Everyone else has settled down
This dull, throbbing noise is
overbearing and she begins
to feel that her mind is going numb
The coffin
She is uncomfortable and her
soul feels heavy
The burial is about to take place
The ringing of the church bell
becomes so intense that it seems
to fill up the entire sky and
everyone hears it
She is no longer part of this world.
She is detached and isolated.
Something breaks within her mind
and she falls through many worlds.
She loses consciousness. Is she dead
or will something follow?
LANGUAGE
• EXTENDED METAPHOR – At the heart of the poem is the funeral metaphor.
The poet uses the various stages of a funeral service to describe her own inner
suffering. Comparing her mental turmoil to a funeral allows the poet to
express the horror, isolation and intense discomfort that she is experiencing.
• REPETITION – The image of the mourners ‘treading’ across her head in ‘Boots
of Lead’ and the comparison of the funeral service to a ‘Drum’ that is beaten
over and over again effectively conveys the pressure that is mounting within
her. In both instances, the poet uses repetition to convey the strain she is
experiencing.
• STRANGE IMAGERY – The ‘Bell’ that grows until it fills the ‘Heavens’ is a
bizarre image, as it is the enormous ‘Ear representing all existence. The third
stanza ultimately creates a terrifying world, so far removed from reality: a
place that shows us the horror and isolation that the speaker must endure as
her mind falls apart.
• ENJAMBMENT – This is were meaning runs from one poetic line to the next
without terminal punctuation. This builds up tension and suggests towards
Dickinson’s disturbed state of mind.
FURTHER READING:
1. Many readers consider this to be a poem about
mental breakdown rather than actual death. What do
you think of this interpretation?
2. The poem suggests terrible isolation. There is sense in
which the poet is cut off from the rest of the world.
How is this conveyed in the poem?
3. The poem makes good use of repetition. What effect
does the repetition of certain words have in the
poem?
4. How would you describe the atmosphere of the
poem? What images do you consider to be the most
powerful?
5. Do you think that the poet was effective in describing
her inner feelings to the reader?
Imagine that you are Emily Dickinson. Write a letter to
your church minister/priest about your concerns for
your mental health.
NOT
SUICIDAL
MELONCHOLY
MENTAL PAIN
BECOMES
PHYSICAL PAIN
LONELY BUT
NOT ALONE
MENTAL
BREAKDOWN
MENTAL
ANGUISH
RELIGIOUS
(FUNERAL, SOUL,
HEAVEN)
OVERLY
SENSITIVE