In the poem "The Last Night that She Lived," Emily Dickinson portrays the human response of those left living after the death of a loved one. Although Dickinson does not attempt to justify the death of her friend, she does express various attitudes that society has towards death. Throughout the poem, Dickinson uses "we" rather than "I." Thus, she is speaking about collective not necessarily personal attitudes and emotions. This demonstrates Dickinson's belief that the understanding of death and the emotions associated with it are expressed universally and communally by humans. .
The anticipation of death causes a heightened sense of awareness to small details in the group. "We noticed smallest things- things overlooked before." Heightened awareness also allows the group to realize that the only thing uncommon about the night is the dying of their friend. Dickinson expresses her attitude that nature is neither responsive nor affected by the human condition. As the group awaits the death of their friend, their sense of time is heightened causing a short time to feel like an eternity. "So nearly infinite- we waited while she passed- it was a narrow time." .
Dickinson says, "We went out and in between her final Room and Rooms where those to be alive Tomorrow were." The passing between the various rooms communicates Dickinson's attitude that there is only a fine line that separates life from death for humans. However, Dickinson's capitalization of the word Room helps demonstrate that these rooms actually represent the two separate worlds of life and death. Although the woman is not yet dead, her approaching death has already created a separation from the living world. .
Dickinson also conveys the attitude that both jealousy and guilt are felt in response to the death of a loved one. "A blame that others could exist while she must finish quiet." Through these lines, Dickinson expresses the guilt felt by those still living while their friend dies.