Emily Dickinson Research Paper

From December 10, 1830, through May 18, 1886, Emily Dickinson lived and wrote her poetry in the comfort and protection of her home. Then in 1890, four years after she passed away, the first volume of her poetry was published for the world to read after being discovered by her sister. Emily Dickinson sees the world through a light that many other people are too afraid to try. This new perspective on life made Dickinson’s poetry stand out against most other poets of her time. This point of view was formed by the Dickinson’s lifestyle as she was a very shy woman who hardly left the comforts of her home. Being shy allowed Dickinson to observe the people around her instead of fully interacting with them. Dickinson found the time to analysis what

Dickinson lived most of her life within her house, away from the outside world that so many poets are influenced by. Her poetry, including her style, is all original that can seem to baffle many readers if not closely examined, that many will not do. Timothy Morris says that “it has become a given of Dickinson criticism that the poet’s style never changed” (Morris). When readers look at Dickinson’s work they mostly have the same critique on her style saying that it never changes. Most readers find themselves getting lost in almost random dashes and capitalized words. Carol Cook explains that “these same features-and others-contribute to making her poetry challenging, baffling, even frustrating” (Cook). Emily Dickinson is not influenced by the standard and proper way to write poetry therefore making her unique. Dickinson is able to emphasize the important words in her poems through capitalizing key world like “The Soul selects her own Society” (Dickinson 101). Through her unique style Dickinson is able to show more of her true self as she believes that one’s soul should choices its own society. The emphasis on “Soul” and “Society” is very important as in many cases society decides what each person does next in life. This emphasis would not be clear if these two words were not capitalized only showing a fraction of the importance of Dickinson’s style. Another unique factor in Dickinson’s style is her use of first person in many of her poems. Most poets of her time did not think write their poems in first person as Dickinson did. By writing in this manner she allows the reader to then enter themselves into the poems causing a new experience in reading her work. This also allows the readers to see through Emily Dickinson’s eyes as they can also read the poems in her point of view. The first person point of view personalizes the poems that adds a new dynamic that many poems