Writing Style
This punctuation mark, often used sparingly and unconventionally by Emily Dickinson, was one of her trademarks, leaving much to interpretation.
A dash (-)
Emily Dickinson was born in this U.S. state in 1830, where she spent most of her life and rarely left.
Massachusetts
This theme, often explored in Dickinson's work, is central to poems like "Because I could not stop for Death," where the inevitability and mystery of this event are discussed.
Death
This poem begins with the line "Because I could not stop for Death," where Dickinson imagines a carriage ride with Death as a companion, suggesting an inevitable journey.
"Because I could not stop for Death"
Emily Dickinson wrote nearly 1,800 of these during her lifetime, revealing much about her inner world, relationships, and poetic process.
Letters
Emily Dickinson frequently employed this device, using it to create unexpected or paradoxical effects, such as in "Hope is the thing with feathers."
Metaphor
This family member was a close confidant of Emily Dickinson and played a significant role in preserving and publishing her poems after her death.
Lavinia Dickinson (her sister)
In many of her poems, Emily Dickinson meditates on this abstract concept, as seen in poems like "Hope is the thing with feathers," where it is personified as a bird.
Hope
In this well-known poem, Dickinson famously writes, "Hope is the thing with feathers," comparing hope to a bird that "perches in the soul."
"Hope is the thing with feathers"
Dickinson frequently corresponded with this person, her close friend and possible romantic interest, whose identity remains a subject of speculation among scholars.
Thomas Wentworth Higginson
Though often focused on death and immortality, Emily Dickinson's work also explores this concept, emphasizing its power and mystery, as seen in poems like "I heard a Fly buzz—when I died."
The nature of existence
Emily Dickinson was a student at this prestigious institution for women in her youth, although she did not graduate.
Mount Holyoke Female Seminary (now Mount Holyoke College)
This theme of the spiritual or the beyond appears in numerous Dickinson poems, such as "I heard a Fly buzz—when I died," where the boundaries between life and afterlife are questioned.
Immortality/The Afterlife
In this poem, Dickinson describes her encounter with a fly at the moment of her death, capturing a moment of stillness and the intrusion of the mundane.
"I heard a Fly buzz—when I died"
This relative of Emily Dickinson, who was also a writer, was the person who first edited and published Dickinson’s poems after her death, based on her letters and manuscripts.
Lavinia Dickinson (her sister)
Emily Dickinson's poems are often written in this meter, which is commonly associated with hymnals and lends a rhythmic, musical quality to her work.
Common meter
In her lifetime, Emily Dickinson only had this many poems published, and those that were published were often altered to fit conventional expectations of the time.
fewer than a dozen (or "only 10" depending on phrasing)
Dickinson frequently explores the contrast between the inner world of the self and the external world, as exemplified in poems like "The Soul selects her own Society."
Self/Inner Life
This poem explores the theme of nature's power, opening with the line "A Bird came down the Walk," and detailing the natural world’s beauty and indifference.
"A Bird came down the Walk"
Dickinson's letters often contain these, which offer a glimpse into her poetic mind and her process of writing, as she frequently discusses ideas and themes she was exploring.
Thoughts or reflections on poetry
Dickinson was known for her frequent use of this unconventional poetic technique, wherein she would often capitalize words that weren’t typically capitalized, lending them extra emphasis or symbolic weight.
Unconventional capitalization
Emily Dickinson's reclusive lifestyle and personal habits led her to be seen as this, although she continued to correspond with a select group of people through letters.
Recluse
This theme is often explored through the lens of nature in Dickinson’s work, as seen in poems like "A Bird came down the Walk," where nature is described both in its beauty and its violence.
Nature
In this famous poem, Dickinson writes, "The Soul selects her own Society," exploring the idea of personal choice and the isolation of the individual in relation to society.
"The Soul selects her own Society"
This term refers to the 1980 publication of Dickinson's collected letters, edited by Thomas H. Johnson, which offered a comprehensive look into her personal life and correspondences.
"The Letters of Emily Dickinson"