First, three parallel layers of interpretation:
| Line | Physical life or body | Displaced memories | Spirit |
| Because I could not stop for Death | not ready to die | same | same |
| He kindly stopped for me | death arrives in its own good time | same | same |
| The Carriage held but just Ourselves | carriage = hearse | carriage = life's course | carriage = "chariot to heaven" |
| And Immortality. | n/a | destination = heaven | destination = eternal life |
| He slowly drove --He knew no haste | slow course of a funeral procession | reviewing dying memories | slow ascent to heaven |
| And I had put away | |||
| My labor and my leisure too | the dead body has no earthly work or play ahead | no plans for tomorrow | acceptance that earthly life is left behind |
| For his Civility | the body is now a corpse, has no company but "Death" | last review, in the company of Death | a civil or kind escort, carrying the spirit to eternity |
| We passed the school where Children strove | |||
| At Recess - in the Ring | the hearse rides past a school | memories of childhood and play | childhood is gone |
| We passed the Fields of Gazing Grain | past a field | memories of productive and fertile periods of life; the harvest is passed | leaving earthly efforts and earthly rewards behind |
| We passed the setting sun | the day ends | sunset = the end of life (or, here, life's memories) | no more days to end |
| Or rather he passed us | life now still | memories & life left behind by passing time | timeless, the spirit looks on |
| The Dews drew quivering and chill | chill night, gravelike | memories fade and grow cold | ? |
| For only Gossamer my gown | thin fabric of burial shroud (but note allusion to spiders) | ghostlike existence clad in airy "gown" | ghost? |
| My Tippet - only Tulle | more thin silk (and, via silkworms, to worms devouring the body) | again, ghostlike | ghost? |
| We passed before a house that seemed | |||
| A swelling of the Ground | fresh-mounded grave | spirit sees own grave | passed beyond the grave |
| The Roof was scarcely visible | a flat tombstone or marker | the grave | n/a |
| The Cornice - in the ground | the top of this "house" is a casket 6 ft. under | the casket | n/a |
| Since then - 'tis Centuries - and yet | long dead | long departed | long departed to heavenly reward |
| Feels shorter than the Day | |||
| I first surmised the Horses' Heads | |||
| Were toward Eternity. | Timeless quality of eternal life |
And now let us look at this poem differently, and see what happens if we reverse a single metaphor (turn "the grave is [like] a house" to "my house is [like] my grave"). We will find we have an alternative, far more negative but equally consistent, reading for the poem:
| Line | Lingering Life |
| Because I could not stop for Death | I was ready to die, but could not: suicide was not an option. |
| He kindly stopped for me | Death "stopped" and refused to complete his task |
| The Carriage held but just Ourselves | carriage = my lingering earthly existence |
| And Immortality. | and my eternal existence thereafter. |
| He slowly drove --He knew no haste | Why can't I die and end this misery? |
| And I had put away | |
| My labor and my leisure too | I'm ready -- see, I no longer work nor play. |
| For his Civility | Death is my constant companion. |
| We passed the school where Children strove | |
| At Recess - in the Ring | My childhood is gone and lost. |
| We passed the Fields of Gazing Grain | It is too late to experience life's fertile period; I've neither work nor children. |
| We passed the setting sun | The day ends, each like the last. |
| Or rather he passed us | Life has passed me by; and keeps passing me by with each sunset. |
| The Dews drew quivering and chill | I am cold inside. |
| For only Gossamer my gown | I am like a creature in a gown of spider-web, almost ghostlike. |
| My Tippet - only Tulle | And fit for worms, along with spiders. |
| We passed before a house that seemed | |
| A swelling of the Ground | This is my house; it might as well be a grave. |
| The Roof was scarcely visible | I keep myself hidden. |
| The Cornice - in the ground | To visit me, one must "go underground." |
| Since then - 'tis Centuries - and yet | It feels like my empty existence has lasted for centuries |
| Feels shorter than the Day | But not as long as one eventful day |
| I first surmised the Horses' Heads | |
| Were toward Eternity. | When my whole life fell apart and I knew I would be left with my misery for eternity. |
Is reading the poem in one of these directions more correct than in the other? I do not believe so.
Was Dickinson consciously thinking about the second direction of reading as she constructed the poem? I have no idea; I also have no idea if that question is important. What is important from my perspective is that the second reading is clearly defensible -- the metaphors, images and symbols all work, and work without giving me the sense that I am forcing an interpretation.
Does the second interpretation fit well with what we know of Dickinson? Yes, very well, as considerable evidence exists to suggest that she was agoraphobic and was subject to periods of extended depression. Imagery of some of her other poems leads me to believe she may have suffered from migraine headaches ("I felt a funeral in my brain" may offer the best description of the pain of a migraine that has ever been put into print.) However, I find it less important to ask if she "lived" the image than to ask if she were capable of creating it -- the answer to that second question being a resounding "yes."