In the poem "It Was Not Death Why I Got Up..." by Emily Dickinson, Dickinson describes a deeply personal depression, a depression in which her mind and emotions are in a state of chaos and desperation. The depression is so overwhelming that he can't even understand its causes and must search for answers to move beyond his current state. His depression is so deep that he avoids even naming it, instead relying on using "it" without clear reference. Perhaps because she is not sure what her feelings are, she never uses the word pain, anguish, or some other direct “name” for her state of mind. Although she is unclear about the reason for her depression, the reader can feel and understand her emotions through the descriptions she uses. Unhappiness and death are a common theme in Dickinson's poems, and in this particular poem, it is the quest to understand these themes that is important to the poet. The poem is composed of six stanzas, each a quatrain. In the first three stanzas, each quatrain is composed of two couplets in a coherent pattern of an eight-syllable first line followed by a six-syllable line. The formality of this structure adds to the solemnity of the subject matter and the poet's inability to understand his state. Emily Dickinson uses images of darkness and death to express the desperation she feels and to try to understand her anguished and chaotic state of mind. At the beginning of the poem, Dickinson continually repeats the phrase "It wasn't" before expressing her emotion. His use of parallelism adds rhythm to his lines allowing the reader to have a smoother understanding and giving emphasis to what he is trying to express. It is significant that Dickinson uses a negative parallel construction in the fi...... middle of paper... stuck at 'midnight' and will find himself in infinite darkness unless he finds the cause. not death, for I arose…”, draws us into a world of depression that could only be expressed through poetry. In the face of internal and external questions about loneliness and self-loathing, Dickinson's poetry is a poignant testimony lamenting these particular states of emotion and desperation. The depth of his feelings cannot be explained or understood. His images of darkness and death, as well as his specific metaphors and poetic devices allow the reader to enter his chaotic state of mind. Although he admits the impossibility of understanding his emotions, through his writing the reader can understand his confusion, desperation, and anguish. If we also know depression, we cannot find comfort in his words, but we can rest a little knowing that we are not alone.