This short poem by Emily Dickinson comprises seven lines and has an ABABCBB rhyme scheme. The meter of the poem is also irregular, with the first line having a pattern of stresses equivalent to iambic tetrameter, while the next line has only three stressed syllables. The third line also has four beats, but we then see a return to shorter lines with only three key stresses.

In the first line of the poem, Dickens uses the idiomatic metaphor of a broken heart. This is a phrase very commonly used in English, but it is nevertheless an example of figurative language: the speaker cannot stop a heart from being literally damaged but may...

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