Similarities Between The Mother And Because I Could Not Stop For Death

Both Gwendolyn Brooks' “the mother” and Emily Dickinson's “Because I Could Not Stop For Death” portray a sense of responsibility and coming to terms with the past, but in different situations and with different consequences. Brooks' poem examines the complicated feelings of having numerous abortions, despite the pain and guilt, but at the same time embraces what has happened. Dickinson's poem reflects on the acceptance of death and acknowledging that it’ll come. Despite these differences, the onus flows through both poems. The poets use various language and imagery to illustrate the difficulties in accepting one's history and its repercussions. Gwendolyn Brooks' poem "The Mother" uses strong and empathetic language, as well as vivid images, to communicate the devastating emotional effect of her
Brooks' decision to have an abortion was not as simple or deliberate as it may have appeared. Though it seems to be purposeful and planned on the outside, she believes that her decisions were not 100% thought out, “Believe that even in my deliberateness, I was not deliberate”. She accepts that rather than being entirely aware or logical, the choices she made may have been impacted by others opinion, her overwhelming emotions, or just confusion about what decision to make. The realization conveys a feeling of confusion and some remorse regarding their decisions. Emily Dickinson's “Because I Could Not Stop For Death” also uses imagery and figurative language to depict various stages of life leading to death. Dickson begins the poem by stating that they did not purposefully stop their lives for death, but that death gently put an end to them, “Because I could not stop for Death – He kindly stopped for me –The Carriage held but just Ourselves – And Immortality”. She did not intentionally seek out or anticipate death; instead, it happened