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Titled The Dash, these thirty-six lines have touched millions of lives and have taken on a life of their own by traveling all over the world. I call it uncomplicated poetry in a complicated world. Today, I share my inspirations from my website, LindaEllis.life. People are always asking me what, in particular, inspired me to write this poem.
Linda Ellis wrote The Dash poem in 1996 and it became a worldwide phenomenon. Contact her for personalized poems, The Dash Book or speaking engagements! Linda Ellis Author, Poet Million Selling Author of "The Dash"
Linda’s inspirations have been featured in thousands of books, major publications, and tv and radio! Linda’s book, "The Dash" has sold more than one million copies. This poem (LIVE YOUR DASH) is free to download for recitation purposes.
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Feb 25, 2022 · In this guide, a literature expert takes you through “The Dash” by Linda Ellis, diving into its meaning, excerpts, and key lessons. What’s the Origin of ‘The Dash’ by Linda Ellis? First, understanding the origin behind a poem often gives clarity to the meaning. Linda Ellis was born in the UK in the 1950s, but she wasn’t always a ...
- Summary
- Structure
- Poetic Techniques
- Detailed Analysis
- Similar Poetry
‘The Dash’ by Linda Ellis is a well-known poem that addresses the brevity of life and the importance of living a good loved-filled one. The poem begins with the speaker describing a speechthey heard about. It was given by a man at a funeral who was addressing the life of his deceased friend. He asked everyone there to consider the “dash” in between...
‘The Dash’ by Linda Ellis is an eight-stanza poem that is in this iteration separated into sets of four lines, known as quatrains. There are several different versions of this poem all of which have different line breaks, numbers of lines per stanza, and a number of stanzas. There are also variations on the text. Sometimes the deceased is a woman, ...
Ellis makes use of several poetic techniques in ‘The Dash’. These include but are not limited to: 1. Symbolism 2. Alliteration 3. Enjambment The first, symbolism, is when a poet uses objects, colors, sounds, or places to represent something else. In this case, the symbolof “the dash” is the focus of the entire poem. It is very clearly introduced in...
Stanzas One and Two
In the first stanza of ‘The Dash,’ the speaker begins by starting a story. These are not their experiences but those belonging to a man they “read” about. In the second line, which describes the setting, there is a good example of alliteration with “funeral” and “friend”. At the funeral, this unnamed man addressed the crowd about his friend’s life. He took a look at the dates on the tombstone. There everyone could see the beginning and the end. In between the two dates, there’s a dash and it...
Stanzas Three and Four
The dash, the speaker defines, represents every day that this person spent on earth and who they spent it with. A reader should take note of the fact that in this version of the poem the man speaking is male but the deceased is un-gendered. This allows a reader to consider any person, including themselves, as the deceased. That “little line” (another example of alliteration) is worth a lot when one considers it, the man says. He goes into detail about what doesn’t matter in life in the fourth...
Stanzas Five and Six
In the fifth stanza of ‘The Dash,’the focus of the poem shifts slightly and the speaker addresses the reader. After hearing the story of the man’s speech at the funeral they’ve decided to reassess their own life. Now they are asking that the reader do the same. Using enjambment, the speaker asks the reader to remember that their time on earth is limited. Everyone should, the speaker believes, be “less quick to anger” and show appreciation and patience with everyone. Love should be the primary...
‘Death is Nothing at All‘ by Henry Scott Holland– speaks thoughtfully about the nature of death. The speaker explains that it’s not a real separation.‘Death and the Moon‘ by Carol Ann Duffy – is an elegywritten for Adrian Henri, a longtime partner of the poet’s. The poem focuses on the distance that death creates.‘I Have a Rendezvous with Death‘ by Alan Seeger– is a moving, wartime poem that describes the speaker’s coming, unavoidable death.- Female
- October 9, 1995
- Poetry Analyst And Editor
Jan 1, 2017 · A beautifully designed gift book featuring the inspiring poem, "The Dash," and the power it has to change your life. In The Dash, Linda Ellis and Mac Anderson beautifully capture the essence of life's journey through Linda's poignant poem, with Mac's signature commentary on how the poem inspires us to make certain choices in our lives.
- Linda Ellis, Mac Anderson
May 24, 2019 · Linda Ellis wrote "The Dash" in one afternoon in 1996. The 36 lines have since come to comprise a most beloved modern funeral poem. "The Dash" has become a memorial service staple that thousands of families recite each year when burying their dead. Today we are exploring Linda Ellis' death positive poem-"The Dash."
