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Hope Is The Thing With Feathers Tone

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The beginning of the poem " "Hope" is the thing with feathers" identifies exactly what "hope" is. Those who do not know the writer of this poem, may not know that she lived most of her live as a recluse (Wikipedia). Dickinson came from a prosperous family who was well liked within the community that they resided in. As Dickinson became older she would rarely leave her room (Wikipedia) and did most of her work there, as well as writing letters to what few friends she did have. Dickinson would often speak of death in her poems and letter's. In letters written by Dickinson, she regularly described her mother as "Cold and aloof", while describing her father as "warm"(Wikipedia). All of the above is why the poem "Hope is the thing with feathers" …show more content…

The poem describes "hope" as a bird, "that perches in the soul". This bird can be found within us all. The speaker makes one feel that hope is there when we are happy, sad, mad, or even feeling discouraged. In line 4, "And never stops - at all", the speaker sets the tone as if hope can never be crushed, that as long as if someone has hope, that person will have the will to keep going. The speaker continues this tone into the second stanza in the 5th and 6th lines "And sweetest - in the Gale - is heard / And sore must be the storm", by making the reader believe that even during a loud noise or strong storm such as a gale, hope will stand tall, as the storm is "sore" and tired of fighting against one's "hope". But then the tone shifts quite drastically in line 7 "That could abash the little Bird", by destroying the bird, which signifies hope. In lines 9-10, "I've heard it in the chillest land / And on the strangest Sea", The speaker changes the tone to sorrow. The speaker describes hearing hope as if they have heard it deep down within their soul, in areas of the mind that they never been able to explore, while in lines 11-12 " Yet - never - in Extremity / It asked a crumb - of me" the speaker appears to change the tone to one of hopefulness. The speaker makes it seem like they know there is hope deep down, that they can hear it, and while "hope" has not asked anything of the speaker, the speaker knows if ever needed, "hope" will be there for

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