Here's a breakdown of the key elements contributing to the tone:
* Acceptance: The speaker readily accepts death as an inevitable companion, personified as a courteous gentleman. There's no fear or resistance, only a sense of peaceful resignation.
* Tranquility: The journey with Death is portrayed as a slow, gentle ride through a landscape of memories and the natural world. The imagery evokes a sense of peace and tranquility, a far cry from the typical fear associated with death.
* Elegiac Beauty: The poem is filled with beautiful imagery and evocative language, creating a sense of elegiac beauty. The speaker's acceptance of death allows her to appreciate the beauty of life's passage and the inevitability of the afterlife.
* Hopeful Undercurrent: While the poem acknowledges death, it also implies a sense of hope and a possible transition to a better state. The "narrow house" and the "heaven" suggest a continuation of the speaker's existence, albeit in a different form.
Overall, the tone is not one of despair or fear, but rather one of peaceful acceptance, contemplation, and even a touch of joy at the prospect of the unknown.