Although it is only 16 lines long, Emily Dickenson's poem “I Heard the Buzz of a Fly—When I Died—” is full of death , darkness and light and life. Throughout the poem, seeing and seeing are important topics that serve as a sense of irony for the narrator who is dying. Dickenson is able to describe death in a very vivid and colorful way that makes readers feel as if they are at the bedside of the dying narrator. He is excellent at using hidden meanings and references for such a short poem – that is the mark of an exceptional poet. Dickenson uses the hyphen consistently throughout the poem, even in the title. He does this to make the reader stop for a second for dramatic effect. The reason for this is because a person on their deathbed will pause and be a little slower, unlike a perfectly lively person. The hyphen is used to separate the poem, while a special style is used to make the poem flow smoothly. This style is called iambic meter, a style that divides lines into two sections of syllables. The syllable pattern is 8, 6, 8, 6 for each stanza of the poem. Iambic meter is used to contrast and support Dickenson's use of the em dash. Dickenson uses very unique diction to describe the overall theme of death within the poem. He uses phrases such as “Stillness in the air,” (line 3) “wrung them” (line 5), and “then the windows failed” (line 15), to describe the events of the death as well as the events leading up to the death. His choice of diction causes the reader to see death a little more vividly than a person would regularly see death. In the second stanza, Dickenson says: The eyes around - they had squinted - and the breaths were quickening for the last onset - when King Be witnesses... in the middle of the paper... hum and silence coming. with it they also represent death and dying. Dickenson makes it very clear that the narrator of this poem believes in God. By using the quotation marks, "Between the Heaves of Storm—" (line 4) and "when the King Be witnessed—in the room—" (lines 7-8), Dickenson lets the reader know that she and the narrator have religious knowledge to put it mildly. Dickenson's phrase "I heard a fly buzz—when I died—" has many more references and meanings than what appears on the surface. This poem means so many things to so many people that the audience changes depending on who reads it. Dickenson wrote this poem for everyone and no one as it is recognizable and at the same time completely different from what one would expect. This poem allows the reader to visualize death in a remarkably intense way for such a short poem of 16 lines.