The Death of The Great Emily Dickinson

Now that we have talked about Emily Dickinson’s life, and her poems I would like to discuss, the end of Emily Dickinson’s life. Emily Dickinson Died on May 15, 1886, in Amherst Massachusetts from Bright's disease. Emily Dickinson now rests in the West Cemetery of Amherst Massachusetts. Emily had one wish when she passed away that there was no church service. There was a gathering at the homestead. Ms. Dickinson was buried in an all white dress and violets pinned on her collar. (Merriman) When Dickinson died at the age of 55 she left behind an astonishing body of work, found in 40 hand-sewn volumes in a locked chest. Spare and unsentimental, her poems wrestled with the great questions of human life and death. (Matthews) Throughout Emily’s life she didn’t consider herself as a person, she wrote this poem that explains how she feels, and why she kept herself locked away in her parents’ house her whole life.

I'm Nobody! Who are you?
     Are you nobody too?
     Then there's a pair of us.
     Don't tell--they'd banish us, you know.
     How dreary to be somebody.
     How public--like a frog --
     To tell your name the livelong June
     To an admiring Bog.

All of Emily Dickinson’s friends and family encouraged her to publish her work only very few were published while she was alive. It wasn’t until after Emily had died that her poems were release. Emily’s sister Lavinia found them after her death, and got assistance from Higginson and Mabel Loomis to edit the poems and publish them for her. The first book was published in 1890, the second in 1891, and the last one was in 1896.  (Merriman) None of Emily Dickinson’s poems were named they all where titled by numbers. I hope this has given you a little more insight to who Emily Dickinson was and how her poems came out into this world.

Matthews, Glenna. "Dickinson, Emily." American Women's History: A Student Companion. Dec. 1 2000: n.p. SIRS Researcher. Web. 09 Dec 2010.

Emily Dickinson (1830-1886), American poet. Early portrait. Miniature painting in the possession of the Dickinson family. (Credit: (c) Bettmann/CORBIS)

The Literary Network.  C.D. Merriman. 2006. Jalic Inc. 2010 http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:QDpux0kRadoJ:www.online-literature.com/dickinson/+how+emily+dickinson+died&cd=9&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us

some important people in Emily's life

Now that we have discussed a couple Emily Dickinson's poems. I would like to go more into her life.  Ms. Dickinson was wrote her poetry before the feminist movement, but still her poetry was about independence, isolation, and self-resilience. (Martin) Emily Dickinson was and will always will be a wonderful role model for all women poets. At the age of seventeen Emily Dickinson found her first of many great mentors. Although Ms. Dickinson did not call them mentors she referred to the as Preceptors. The first one was Benjamin Franklin Newton, followed by Charles Wadsworth,  then Samuel Bowles, and one of Emily's greatest preceptors was Thomas Wentworth Higginson. (Martin) All four men guided and influenced Emily Dickinson with literary support. As a teenager Emily meet Susan Gilbert and they were friends for five decades. Emily referred to Susan as Sue Emily and Susan had a lot of the same interest especially literature. (Martin) Out of all of Emily's family and friends Emily wrote most or her letters or poems to "sister sue" Although Emily and Sue were neighbors Emily still sent letters over to Sue. Here is a poem Emily wrote for Sue,

One Sister have I in our house,

And one, a hedge away.

There's only one recorded,

But both belong to me.

One came the road that I came --

And wore my last year's gown --

The other, as a bird her nest,

Builded our hearts among.

She did not sing as we did --

It was a different tune --

Herself to her a music

As Bumble bee of June.

Today is far from Childhood --

But up and down the hills

I held her hand the tighter --

Which shortened all the miles --

And still her hum

The years among,

Deceives the Butterfly;

Still in her Eye

The Violets lie

Mouldered this many May.

I spilt the dew --

But took the morn --

I chose this single star

From out the wide night's numbers --

Sue - forevermore!

This poem is how although Emily only has one blood sister she also as another sister and how many different thing make a sister hood.   Susan was a very important person. I hope this has given you some more incite to Ms. Emily Dickinson.

Martin, Wendy. The Cambridge Introduction to Emily Dickinson. Cambridge University Press : Publisher, 2007.

Making it About Real Life!

   

Emily Dickinson was a great poet. She made her poems about real life, about her real life. Most of her poems are things that she went through and her experiences. According to Neil Scheurich Emily was not religious she was is arguably among the most spiritual of poets inasmuch as her themes of God, love, beauty, and especially death and suffering all depend upon the jarring juxtaposition of embodied human experience and transcendent human significance.( Scheurich) Since Emily's poems where about everyday life and her experiences in  Emily Dickinson's Apostrophe they sate that More than a third of Emily Dickinson's poems appear in letters to known recipients. They were addressed the direct addresses . Here is one of Emily's poems to which I refer she relates to real life,

Just lost, when I was saved!

                                                             Just felt the world go by!

Just girt me for the onset with Eternity,

When breath blew back.

And on the other side 

I heard recede the disappointed tide!

Therefore, as One returned, I feel

Odd secrets of the line to tell!

Some Sailor, skirting foreign shores—

Some pale Reporter, from the awful doors

Before the Seal!

Next time, to stay!

Next time, the things to see

By Ear unheard,

Unscrutinized by Eye—

Next time, to tarry.

While the Ages steal—

Slow tramp the Centuries,

And the Cycles wheel!

(160)

The poem came from (Daniels) he says that this poem refers to a near death experience that Emily Dickinson had. well lets end this post here. I hope you can see my point when I say she makes her poems about everyday life and her experiences. 

citations:

Daniels, Patsy J. "THE GAP IN EMILY DICKINSON'S CONSCIOUSNESS: BUDDHISM IN EMILY DICKINSON'S POETRY. (Cover story)." Jackson State University Researcher 21.3 (2007): 1-31. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 16 Nov. 2010.

Scheurich, Neil. "Suffering and Spirituality in the Poetry of Emily Dickinson." Pastoral Psychology 56.2 (2007): 189-197. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 18 Nov. 2010.

Short, Bryan C. "Emily Dickinson's Apostrophe." Women's Studies 31.6 (2002): 769. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 18 Nov. 2010.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/chimichagua/773403044/

Who is Emily Dickinson?

Hi my name is Felicia and throughout high school I always heard how great of a poet Emily Dickinson was. To this day I know nothing about who she is. So for all of you who are interested about learning about her with me come along for the ride we can learn together! We are going to start off with just some bacis facts about her then we will get into some stuff later in the blog. Emily Elizabeth Dickinson was born on December 10, 1830. In Amherst Massachusetts she is the daughter of Edward and Emily Norcross Dickinson and had two siblings.   Throughout Emily's life her mother was not emotionally accessible. As a child Emily grew up following her father's religion, but as she got older she argued about what he believed in. Emily's grandfather Samuel Dickinson was one of the founders of Amherst College, and her father was a lawyer that served as the treasure for the college. Since Emily had family involved in the college she got a fine education. Emily  Dickinson was diagnosed in 1886 as having Bright's disease, a kidney dysfunction that resulted in her death in May of that year. After dying Emily's sister found all the poems that Emily had wrote and had them published.