Emily Dickinson, “Poems”
How Dickinson inspired many poets to expand their writing.
Introduction
Emily Dickinson was a famous poet from the 1800’s. However, out of the 1800 poems that she wrote, only about ten of them were published in her lifetime. And, even the ones that were published were edited quite a bit. This was mostly because people thought the stuff she wrote and how she wrote it was more on the different side of things, so they were not a big supporter of her writing. However, her deciding to be her own person with her writing style has inspired many other poets down the line to follow.
About the Author
Emily Dickinson was a poet born on December 10th, 1830 in Amherst, Massachusetts to her parents Edward and Emily Dickinson. Dickinson also had a brother and sister named Austin and Lavinia. Her and her sister grew up very close as they both stayed at home, while her brother branched off on his own and moved out to get married. As Dickinson grew up, she continued her education and went to Amherst University. Although, she left the University abruptly. “Though the precise reasons for Dickinson’s final departure from the academy in 1848 are unknown; theories offered say that her fragile emotional state may have played a role and/or that her father decided to pull her from the school” (Biography 2021). This was seen to be one of the reasons Dickinson started to write poetry. Her writing style was rather different from the average poetry you would read, and this is because she was living in this fragile state of mind that she was forever stuck in. She used poetry as her way to escape her everyday reality. Since her poetry was so different, it was hardly ever published, and if it was, it was edited quite a bit by a publisher.
About the Book
Dickinson’s book “Poems” was a book full of all the poems she previously wrote before she died in 1886. The 1800 poems were found by her sister and roommate stashed in a drawer after Dickinson’s passing. These poems were never previously seen before by the public. This was because her writing style was looked at as rather different because she tended to write in a style that had shorter stanzas, small sentences, and multiple dashes in the poem. She liked to be very short and blunt in the way that she wrote. Back in the 1800’s, this was not a very popular writing style. She also wrote about some topics that other writers would never come near. “A keen observer, she used images from nature, religion, law, music, commerce, medicine, fashion, and domestic activities to probe universal themes: the wonders of nature, the identity of the self, death and immortality, and love” (Emily Dickinson Museum n.d).
Legacy
After Emily Dickinson’s poems were found in a drawer, and the a book was published, her writing was finally released to the world. When the other poets saw her different writing style, they were all influenced by her approach to poetry writing. “Using original wordplay, unexpected rhymes, and abrupt line breaks, she bends literary conventions, demonstrating a deep and respectful understanding of formal poetic structure even as she seems to defy its restrictions” (Brooklyn Museum n.d). This was something that no other poet ever experimented with. This book being published forever changed the poetry world. This became such a popular way of writing, that this is what almost all poems look like in this day of age. She was the inspiration of so many big poets; including Jack Frost, Walt Whitman, and Sylvia Plath! “Although she was a prolific writer, the world would not realize Dickinson’s true artistic talent until after her death” (Brooklyn Museum n.d). She will never be able to see the positive change she made to American Literature. If only she would have begun to publish her writing before her death. I believe that if she started all of this before it was too late, she would have done so many other amazing things in her lifetime!
Works Cited:
Emily Dickinson — poems, Quotes & Death. (2021, May 7). https://www.biography.com/authors-writers/emily-dickinson
Major characteristics of Dickinson’s poetry. Emily Dickinson Museum. (n.d.). https://www.emilydickinsonmuseum.org/emily-dickinson/poetry/tips-for-reading/major-characteristics-of-dickinsons-poetry/#:~:text=Like%20most%20writers%2C%20Emily%20Dickinson,death%20and%20immortality%2C%20and%20love.
Emily Dickinson. Brooklyn Museum. (n.d.). https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/eascfa/dinner_party/place_settings/emily_dickinson#:~:text=Dickinson’s%20poems%20have%20had%20a,seems%20to%20defy%20its%20restrictions.