Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson

With respect to the latter point, that is, the issue of nature in the works of Whitman and Dickinson, Ferlazzo writes that nature to Dickinson was something very different than it was to Whitman. Although Whitman is clearly cognizant of the role and power of death in human life and in nature, Whitman nevertheless sees nature in general as a cause for joyous celebration rather than as a force calling for contemplation of death. For Dickinson, however, nature is best known for its darker rather than its celebratory elements:

For Dickinson, when an individual became a part of nature, when he entered the "haunted house," he was going to meet his

. . .
their passing the sun means that time passes us by whether we like it or not. In her acceptance, she realizes how time has been and is finally for good passing her by. The description of the house at which the poet and Death stop seems to imply that it is immense, reaching from the ground up so high that its roof can barely be seen. Such a description would indicate that it is perhaps a residence symbolizing spiritual eternity. Therefore, both Whitman and Dickinson see death not as the end of life, but rather as a bridge of sorts from one station to the next. At the same time, the differences seem far more significant than the similarities. In Dickinson there is clearly a more traditional and perhaps even Christian perspective of life after death, although it is far from dogmatic, but rather veiled. Her attitude toward religion is complex and at times contradictory, in fact. As McNeil writes, Although she admired declarations of faith in other poets . . . , Dickinson never trusted the idea of God the Father. She engaged in what would now be called patriarchal analysis, finding what she called in "I never lost as much but twice" the "Burglar!--Banker!--Father!" consistently present in both the literal and symbolic Fat
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Approximate Word count = 3190
Approximate Pages = 13 (250 words per page)

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