I Taste A Liquor Never Brewed

Emily Dickinson was an exceptional writer through the mid-late 1800’s. She never published any of her writings and it wasn’t until after her death that they were even discovered. The complexity of understanding her poems is made prevalent because of the fact that she, the author, cannot expound on what her writing meant. This causes others to have to speculate and decide for themselves the meaning of any of her poems. There are several ways that people can interpret Emily Dickinson’s poems; readers often give their opinion on which of her poems present human understanding as something boundless and unlimited or something small and limited, and people always speculate Dickinson’s view of the individual self.

The first stanza introduces the speaker’s earliest memory as they are starting the journey of crossing over. Right away the reader is introduced to a fly buzzing around the room, “I heard a Fly buzz- when I died-“(1). The fly represents the soul leaving the body and witnessing the surroundings of the life they are leaving behind. The speaker is aware that the people around have crying and Dickinson illustrating the scene with a metaphor, “Was like the Stillness in the Air- Between the Heaves of Storm-“ (3-4). The speaker realizes that the family members who have come to mourn have not made any sounds during the periods of wailing and quietly sniffling. Dickinson’s comparison to a storm that changes sound constantly it perfectly displays how people mourn. First loudly, then quietly before the wails rise again.

The last two lines of the poem are a timid reflection on what might happen “Had I the Art to stun myself/ With Bolts—of Melody!” (23-24). The idea that creation is a power that can get loose and injure even the creator illuminates why in this poem the artist positions herself firmly as a mere spectator. In these first two poems, we meet a Dickinson who is not entirely familiar to us—even though we are accustomed to her strong desire for privacy, these poems can be startling in the way they reveal the intensity of Dickinson’s fears. She is, after all, shrinking from what is dearest to her—nature, one of her favorite subjects, becomes a harsh judge, and poetry, her favored medium of communication, can suddenly render the reader “impotent” and the writer “stun[ned]” (19, 23). The extremity of her positions in shrinking from the small and beautiful things she loves creates the sense that this is just the beginning of a journey by leaving so much room for change.

Stanza one explains how Dickinson used the words to express about how it’s going to be a wild night. (maybe referring to partying) To have this night to shine to make it special almost like a treat. Saying “thee” Dickison might have been referring to people but she could have referred it to the wild night. She also used the word luxury in the context that means it probably doesn’t happen very often so it will most likely make it really special. Stanza two explains by the capitalization of her words. I really enjoyed really this stanza. It really stands out to me. The world “futile” it means pointless. “Heart” trying to highlight these words because this night should be wild and fun. It should be a free night, no specific plans just be a open

Emily Dickinson is one of the most influential poets of all time, and has a unique way of using literal imagery to paint a picture in the readers mind. The best poets are those that excel at using their words to create clear, concrete images and intrigue their reader. Dickinson began writing poetry around the year 1855, and prospered for another 10 years. Some of her most famous poems include “I Taste a liquor Never Brewed”, “Success is Counted Sweetest”, and “Wild nights – Wild Nights!”, all of which have influenced many aspiring writers to become poets, and show her true colors as a poet. Among her works of poetry, I felt a Funeral, in my Brain, is one that resembles the frequent patterns of Dickinson’s style of

The start of the poem illustrates how women gave up the pleasure and “playthings of her life” (Dickinson). This hints at how women are intimidated in social gatherings, and how they make themselves into the norms of society and make

The opening, “We Grow accustomed to the Dark.” In this, I found a sense of friendliness with the mentally ill. It uses “dark” as a metaphor for the insane to contrast with the light which is sanity. In other words, Dickinson, creates a contrast between two scenarios: one that I will call sun and the other moon. They refer to day and evening respectively.

Emily Dickinson is was a talented and unique poet; some might even call her strange or mad. This poem, in a way, represents her life that was far from what was considered normal. In the 1800s, a certain type of behavior was expected from people, especially from women. Women cooked, cleaned, and nurtured their families, while under the control of men. It was not looked upon well when women strayed from this status quo. Emily Dickinson did, and this poem demonstrates this rebellion.

A poem written by Emily Dickinson is presented in The Norton Anthology of American Literature, is a humorous and enchanting, poem. There is no darkness to take away from the playful ways in which the poem is worded. The poem itself is primarily an extended metaphor on the beauty of nature. A wondrous beauty that one could even become drunk on the heavenly summer day just the same as one who is “drunk on love”. Dickinson alludes to such in the first line of the first stanza “I taste a liquor never brewed” (Krupat and Levine 1667). With the words “never brewed” Dickinson offers an idea of a fresh new day, this could be shaking off the winter blues and stepping into the warmth of the outdoors.

In contrary to Whitman’s, her poems are not descriptive but allows you to paint the picture for yourself. On her Poem 207, she uses metaphors for comparison, as she uses drunkenness or intoxication to express how the beauty of nature makes her feel, “Inebriate of Air - am I - And Debauchee of Dew – Reeling – thro’ endless summer days – From inns of molten Blue” (Dickinson, 1861, pp. 1195).

Emily Dickinson’s poem can also be interpreted as having an untraditional form which is depicted through the structure, rhythm and genre of the piece, for instance this poem has not been given a title much like her other works and thus generally referred to by there fist line. Dickinson’s piece is a four stanza quatrain which explores the subject matter of alcohol as she uses the language of liquor to describe her drunkenness on life. Unlike Creeley, Dickinson demonstrates an extensive use of punctuation such as the constant dashes and pauses at random places throughout each stanza and her uses of quotation marks, “When “Landlords” turn the drunken Bee, Out of the Foxglove’s door-, When Butterflies- renounce their “drams”-.” It is believe Dickinson

Emily Dickinson “I taste a liquor never brewed” Emily Dickinson’s Poem “I taste a liquor never brewed” is a poem based on Dickinson’s views of her reality. Dickenson is speaking, while observing her surroundings and giving her readers a glimpse of what not only her eyes see but what her heart feels. when Dickinson says “Inebriate of air-am I” (Dickinson 1195) she lets the readers know she is using our knowledge of alcohol to describe nature and feelings, and the intensity of the emotion she is feeling. The poem is centered around giving the audience a clear visual of her feelings about life.

What Dickinson is doing in these two first lines are giving emphasis with the use of a bird to symbolize freedom and to make you realize that hope is always there, in your heart. In the last two lines of the first stanza, the speaker focuses in what the bird does: “sings the tunes without the words” (Dickinson line 3), meaning that hope is endless, and it will remain on you forever. The bird singing in the soul it’s a perfect example of Dickinson’s homiletic style. Her language through the first stanza is vivid and gentle, and it captions the attention of the reader using metaphors (lines 1-3), personifications (line 2 and 3), slant rhymes and

Emily Dickinson’s reclusive life was arguably a result of her proposed bi-polar disorder. This life and disorder unduly influenced the themes of her poetry. She chose not to associate herself with society and volumes of her poems, published posthumously, examine this idea as well as the themes of nature and death. The clearest examples of these themes are presented in the following analysis of just of few of her