If I should die,
And you should live —
And time should gurgle on —
And morn should beam —
And noon should burn —
As it has usual done —
If Birds should build as early
And Bees as bustling go —
One might depart at option
From enterprise below!
‘Tis sweet to know that stocks will stand
When we with Daisies lie —
That Commerce will continue —
And Trades as briskly fly —
It makes the parting tranquil
And keeps the soul serene —
That gentlemen so sprightly
Conduct the pleasing scene!

Analysis, meaning and summary of Emily Dickinson's poem If I should die,

20 Comments

  1. Cutielover says:

    The poem is more about how things keep moving even after death. She talks about her own death and how even after that the world will keep moving. It will keep giving, loving, hurting, and so forth until the end. In my personal opinion it’s away to create some piece of mind, especially to someones loved ones. That no matter what happens or who you lose even though your world feels like it’s stopped, it will soon start to move again.

  2. uuuuugh says:

    i think people should stop pull bullcrap meanings out of something they didn’t right. it makes you seem stupid expecially when there is no real evidence to support your claim.

  3. raye says:

    i really like that this site has the poems in their unedited state,as they should be. this poem is so beautiful, and the fact that many were edited pains me.

  4. Ashley says:

    I think this peom is about how even when you die the world will still suffer and know one can change that. You may have died but all your family and friends will suffer till they die then some one else will suffer. you will never be able to stop the world from sufferig.

  5. Anne says:

    I think that this is a great poem, but that it isnt about death really at all. that it is about a realtionship she is involved in. it is a very sexual poem…gurgle, burn, bustling, depart at option from enterprise below…get it. I think that she is telling him it is okay to go on and love again after she leaves him, whether that is death or just leaving him

  6. Brian says:

    I feel that this poem actually is discussing the comfort of knowing that the world will continue after death. In the lines “One might depart at option from enterprise below” what she is talking about is if she could be reassured that the world would continue, then she would be willing to give up her life instead of being afraid of losing it.

  7. Heather says:

    I think this poem was to help realize the importance of her and other peoples lives!I love this poem!

  8. Nataly says:

    it is true- the image she potrays in this poem. she is trying to show how even wen one dies life still goes on.
    its meaning is well portrayed

  9. Steve J. says:

    This poem has nothing to do with the reassuring thought that life goes on when one dies; in fact, I believe that it has to do with the ideal comfort of death, away from the ridiculous “enterprises” in life. Dickinson sarcastically belittles stocks, commerce, and trade by juxtaposing it with a more captivating, enthralling concept of death. After all, what does NASDAQ really matter when we are “lying with daisies”? The key line that triggers the sarcasm is “One might depart at option from enterprise below!” More or less, I think this poem correlates with her poem “Safe in their Alabaster Chambers” in that both suggest a certain comfort away from the world and its tiresome components.

  10. Jessica says:

    This is one of my favorite poems from her,I think it really expresses a feeling that many of us can relate to.

  11. elora says:

    it’s my favorite of her poems it’s awsome.

  12. Elizabeth says:

    i think this poem was good!

  13. DKB says:

    When Emily wrote this, I think she was thinking about her life and it’s importance, but at the same time, realizing that life would go on even after she was gone.

  14. sandra says:

    I can relate this poem to my life without my mother

  15. Madee says:

    I think this poem is a really great poem i can really relate to her i write poems like these i can write just like her i like Emily D. shes a great writer.

  16. Alya says:

    i guess many people can relate to this poem… but not many would want to…

  17. Sarah says:

    I love Everything

  18. vianca says:

    i strongly think that when emily wrote this poem she probably was in the stage of drepession. Maybe the lost of her belovings. it seems like she desire death in a calm way.

  19. Blake Estep says:

    Dickenson’s poem to me means alot about everymans struggles to find their place in an ever changing world.

  20. DanielK says:

    i love her work all of it

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