In the poem I Heard A Fly Buzz, the author, Emily Dickinson, uses various literary techniques, including visual imagery, personification, similes and metaphors, and unique syntax, to comment on how trivialities can pose as a distraction, even in major moments like death. Dickinson begins the poem with a seemingly insignificant phrase-”I heard a Fly buzz”- but adds “-when I died.” Dickinson’s unique syntax consists of two dashes that create a pause between these phrases and the next line, which establishes the extreme contrast in significance between the phrases, and a shift in mood. Dickinson also capitalizes “Fly” but not “died,” creating a sense of irony that contributes to her overall commentary on importance. Next, Dickinson uses the repetition
