Lyric Poem · Death & Loss

All but Death, can be Adjusted

by Emily Dickinson

All but Death, can be Adjusted —

Dynasties repaired —

Systems — settled in their Sockets —

Citadels — dissolved —

Wastes of Lives — resown with Colors

By Succeeding Springs —

Death — unto itself — Exception —

Is exempt from Change —

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“All but Death, can be Adjusted” by Emily Dickinson — quilloak.com/poems/all-but-death-can-be-adjusted

Quick facts

Poem: All but Death, can be Adjusted
Poet: Emily Dickinson
Length: 8 lines
Form: Lyric Poem, Short Poems
Themes: Death & Loss, Short

Craft notes

How this poem works

Measured from the text on this page, not copied from a summary. Counts are approximate: syllables and rhymes come from the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary, which models General American English, so dialect, older pronunciation, and performance can all change what you hear.

Shape: 8 lines · 2 quatrains
End rhyme: No regular perfect end rhyme. The poem may still be using slant rhyme, assonance, or internal echo, which this check does not score.
Line length: Lines run 5-8 syllables (median 8), consistent with tetrameter. No single length dominates, which is normal once elision and contraction are in play.

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Text, source & rights

A traceable edition

Full-text display is based on the committed source record and a United States term-expiry review.

Author record: Emily Dickinson1830–1886
Source record: PoetryDBAll but Death, can be Adjusted by emily-dickinson, PoetryDB transcription
Display decision: Full text · United States · reviewed 2026-07-18
Publication record: Not recorded in the imported source
Text fingerprint: SHA-256 2631042d489dafa2…
Editorial handling: Whitespace and stanza breaks normalized for web display; no material wording change recorded.

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Lyric Poem Short Poems Death & Loss Short

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