The speaker's perspective
The speaker of I felt a funeral in my brain places the event in the past tense, which suggests that he or she is on the other side of the event. However, the speaker does not reveal the name of the deceased person, which creates a sense of mystery. This poem also uses capitalization throughout, which suggests its figurative meaning. It is a powerful piece, as it conveys the themes of death and mourning.
Sense is conquering irrationality
Humans exhibit irrational behavior under abnormal circumstances when the mechanisms that give us optimal behavior are overridden. This causes people to fail to recognize the irrationality of their actions. They believe that their actions are rational and are based on their hidden interests. They also fail to consider the social consequences of their actions and lack empathy. They may get these ideas from peers who convey them as necessary for social acceptance.
Sense is breaking through the floor of the brain
The last line of the poem refers to "the feeling of a funeral in my head." It suggests a feeling of pressure and intensity. It also suggests the death of something in the speaker's head, such as a heartbeat or a drum. It's possible that the speaker is having a panic attack and her brain is being overloaded with all these emotions.
The speaker's dreadful feeling
In i felt a funeral in my brain, Emily Dickinson depicts the dreadful feeling of the speaker's own brain, and the pain that this feelings cause. This feeling heightens her loneliness and throws her into a pit of isolation. Eventually, she loses all sense and is overwhelmed by this experience.
A funeral and the speaker's sanity
The poem begins at a funeral and progresses to a climactic encounter. The speaker has the feeling that her sanity is in danger and will die. She feels the mourners in her brain, which is an indication that she is mentally ill. The poet is also aware of signs that she is suffering from depression and mental illness.
The experience of silence
In addition to the feeling of dread, the speaker's experience also involves the experience of silence. In fact, the speaker is convinced that she would lose consciousness if the funeral service ends. However, fortunately, she does not lose consciousness, but instead sees her mind as an entity separate from her body.
Sense is defeating irrationality
In Emily Dickinson's poem, "I felt a funeral in my brain because sense was defeating irrationality," she uses capital letters to personify words. Funeral is capitalized because it is a separate being, while brain is capitalized because sense is the speaker's independent brain. The speaker experiences pain and terror at the funeral service and cannot pinpoint the source of the pain.
A split in the speaker's brain
The speaker evokes a funeral, with mourners pacing back and forth. The speaker's soul rumbles like a worn floor. The speaker feels terrified and is as afraid as the mourners. The funeral is a metaphor for a split in the speaker's brain.
The death of consciousness
In the first line, "I felt a funeral in my brain because sense was defeating irrationality" indicates that the poem is not about physical death but about a death of consciousness associated with depression. The first line is also odd because it is not a direct reference to a biological death, but rather about the death of the speaker's consciousness. The speaker's description of this experience suggests that it is a figurative death, and the speaker is in a distorted state of mind. In this sense, the funeral ceremony exteriorizes the internal process and gives it some structure.
The funeral and loss of control
Emily Dickinson's poem uses a funeral metaphor to represent the loss of the speaker's mind. During the poem, she loses her sense of self and her sanity. The funeral represents death, and is an appropriate image. Because of its formality, funerals are also symbolic of death, and their procedures suggest control. In contrast to the speaker's loss of control, the funeral also marks the passage from sanity to insanity.
