Emily Dickinson: America's Greatest Poet

Emily Dickinson was one of the best American poets, but she is very famous for being a secluded writer. Emily Dickinson was born on December 10, 1846 in Amherst, Massachusetts and she died on May 15, 1886 at the age of 55 in Amherst, Massachusetts. Her isolation from the outside world still confuses literary critics and readers of her poetry and letters. There are many theories developed over time about her seclusion. Some people believe her secluded way of life was her own choice but she was very close to her family. Emily Dickinson lived in a happy home and went to a school during her life. Dickinson was born in Amherst, Massachusetts, in 1830 and lived there all her life most of her life. An introduction into Emily Dickinson’s poetry themes, and discussion about the isolation in her life, and discussion about the isolation in her poetry will be examined in the paper.

The poetry of Emily Dickinson is one of the most recognizable of the 19th century. Dickinson’s poetry stands out because of its unconventional use of capitalization and punctuation. Her poems contain capitalized words which are not normally capitalized. Her poems are noted for the frequent use of the dash. Literary scholars have attempted to interpret Dickinson’s unconventional capitalization and punctuation. Some believe that it was merely part of Dickinson’s penmanship (Weisbuch 73). They therefore edit Dickinson’s poetry and publish them in standardized form. Others believe that the capitalization and punctuation were a conscious effort on Dickinson’s part. These scholars notice the little nuances of Dickinson’s dashes, such as whether

Emily Dickinson, recognized as one of the greatest American poets of the nineteenth century, was born December 10, 1830 in Amherst, Massachusetts (Benfey, 1). Dickinson’s greatness and accomplishments were not always recognized. In her time, women were not recognized as serious writers and her talents were often ignored. Only seven of her 1800 poems were ever published. Dickinson’s life was relatively simple, but behind the scenes she worked as a creative and talented poet. Her work was influenced by poets of the seventeenth century in England, and by her puritan upbringing. Dickinson was an obsessively private writer. Dickinson withdrew herself from the social contract around the age of thirty and devoted herself, in secret, to writing.

Emily Dickinson, born in 1830 in Amherst, Massachusetts, is regarded as one of America’s best poets. After a poor experience at Mount Holyoke Female Seminary, where she was regarded as a “no hope,” her writing career took off in full swing. Although her family was more conservative, regular churchgoers, and socially prominent town figures, Dickinson preferred a socially reserved lifestyle that renounced the traditional values of her day (Baym, 1189-93). The iconoclastic spirit pervasive in Emily Dickinson's poetry reflects her conflict with the traditions of New England society.

Emily Dickinson was one of the best American poets, but she is very famous for being a secluded writer. Emily Dickinson was born on December 10, 1846 in Amherst, Massachusetts and she died on May 15, 1886 at the age of 55 in Amherst, Massachusetts. Her isolation from the outside world still confuses literary critics and readers of her poetry and letters. There are many theories developed over time about her seclusion. Some people believe her secluded way of life was her own choice but she was very close to her family. Emily Dickinson lived in a happy home and went to a school during her life. Dickinson was born in Amherst, Massachusetts, in 1830 and lived there all her life most of her life. An introduction into Emily Dickinson’s poetry themes, and discussion about the isolation in her life, and discussion about the isolation in her poetry will be examined in the paper.

“Success is counted sweetest, by those who ne’er succeed.” -Emily Dickinson. When Dickinson speaks of the pain of failure and the satisfaction of victory, she speaks from experience. The hermit-like poet wrote nearly 2,000 poems by the time she died at 55. Emily Dickinson was a reserved poet and her work was largely unpopular during her life. She wrote under the topics of mortality and romance, however her works are always questioned of originality and for their vague nature.

In her adolescent years, Dickinson didn’t spend a lot of time in school. She attended Amherst Academy for a short period of time. She was a very intelligent student. She later attended Mount Holyoke Female Seminary. She made a few friends, but not many. This is also the time she began writing. Before Dickinson departed from Amherst Academy, she had been influenced by a book of poetry by Ralph Waldo Emerson. She had other influences such as her principle at Amherst, Leonard Humphrey. As a writer, her work escalated when her poems were published in their original structure. She is mostly known for her new way of writing, which was short, but it was very passionate. What she mostly wrote about was her feelings and she was brutally sincere, but she also kept actual poetry intact. Dickinson’s writing was different from other poets’ writings because she didn’t formulate her writing. She wrote what was on her mind

Emily Elizabeth Dickinson was born on 10th December, 1830, in the town of Amherst, Massachusetts. As a young child, she showed a bright intelligence, and was able to create many recognizable writings. Many close friends and relatives in Emily’s life were taken away from her by death. Living a life of simplicity and aloofness, she wrote poetry of great power: questioning the nature of immortality and death. Although her work was influenced by great poets of the time, she published many strong poems herself. Two of Emily Dickinson’s famous poems, “Because I Could Not Stop for Death” and “I Heard a Fly Buzz- When I Died”,

Emily Dickinson is one of the most famous American poets. She wrote many poems throughout her lifetime, but it was not until after her death that she became famous. She wrote about death and life, love and separation, and God. She wrote about topics like these because she was inspired by the experiences in her life. Throughout her life, she dealt with problems that caused her to seclude herself, wear only a while dress, and write poems. Many have questioned what caused her seclusion? What happened that was so devastating to make her want to be alone all the time? Why did she always wear white?

After her mother’s death, loss of love, and father’s death in 1874, Emily began to experience acute agoraphobia, depression, anxiety, and even suffered from troubles with her eyesight. Emily had never truly been found of visits or visiting others, but after these tramatic life events, Emily became a absolute recluse. Due to the fact that she no longer had anyone to care for or care about, Emily’s life was soon consumed with poetry which became her only joy in life. She did not write to become famous or to have her works published, but simply wrote to express her feelings and to find solace amidst her sufferings. In her letters to her intellectual friend Thomas Higginson, she elaborated on this by saying, "If fame belonged to me, I could not escape her; if she did not, the longest day would pass me on the chase.…My barefoot rank is better" (“Emily Dickinson Biography: American Poet and Author,” n.d.). It was not until Emily’s death in 1886, due to a nervous collapse in 1884, that her poetry was eventually published. Lavinia Dickinson discovered hundreds of Emily’s poems in notebooks and on various scraps of paper and published her first volume in 1890. Lavinia and other family members disregarded Emily’s instructions to destroy her poems after her death and instead began publishing Emily’s talents as a writer. However, it was not until the 1955 that all of

“Poets such as Hart Crane, Adrienne Rich, and Amy Lowell have expressed their gratitude for Dickinson’s work in their own poetry” (Johnson 24). Emily’s poems have been enjoyed across the globe and read in other languages (Johnson 24). Emily’s poems are enjoyed by many poets and readers around the world. “Over the next seven years she created 40 such booklets and several unsewn sheaves, and altogether they contained about 800 poems (Habegger 5). She arranged her work this way to keep it to herself or maybe wanted her work published after her death (Habegger 5). Many writers try to get their work well known and Emily was one who chose to keep it as private as possible. “She sent her poems and letters only to close family and friends who appreciated her writing and skills and never solicited recognition for the same (“Emily Dickinson Biography” 3). Later on in life problems with her eyesight did not stop her from writing and in contrast inspired her to write even more (“Emily Dickinson” 11). Emily Dickinson’s inspiration to write progressed as she got older. Emily Dickinson’s poems have had a great impact on American Literature and are enjoyed by many people around the

Emily Dickinson is the creator of some of the most famous works in American poetry. Throughout the 1800s, the author dedicated her life to poetry. She used metaphors in an advanced way and displayed power through her unique use of diction. Emily’s immense power with words derived from her determination. Dickinson’s determination to achieve individuality and power is exemplified through her complex poetry and derived from the events that occurred in her life.

Emily Elizabeth Dickinson was born December 10, 1830, into an influential family in Amherst, Massachusetts. Her father helped found Amherst College, where Emily later attended between 1840 and 1846. She never married and died in the house where she was born on May 15, 1886.

Emily Dickinson is an American poet born in Amherst Massachusetts December tenth, 1830. As a child Dickinson’s love for books was massive yet she did not start writing poetry until she was eighteen. However, she was not known of until after her death. Nonetheless, some people other than her family did now about Dickinson’s remarkable poems. Furthermore, most tried encouraging her to publish her poems yet others did the contrary. Emily Dickinson’s life is what caused her to write such great poetry.

Emily Dickinson is one of the most interesting female poets of the nineteenth century. Every author has unique characteristics about him/her that make one poet different from another, but what cause Emily Dickinson to be so unique are not only the words she writes, but how she writes them. Her style of writing is in a category of its own. To understand how and why she writes the way she does, her background has to be brought into perspective. Every poet has inspiration, negative or positive, that contributes not only to the content of the writing itself, but the actual form of writing the author uses to express his/her personal talents. Emily Dickinson is no different. Her childhood and adult experiences and culture form