Emily Dickinson-Partner Blog

Emily Dickinson had a passion for nature. It served as the muse for a lot of her work. In “Bring Me the Sunset in a Cup”, Emily Dickinson describes her excitement when waking up on a dew covered morning. She uses a very cheery tone for the rhythm of the poem which shows the readers how positively she feels for the time of day. The rhythm of a poem can have a huge impact on the story because the reader is given a emotion without the author straight up telling them the feeling in the poem. It is a literary tool that enhances the poetry and the mood of the story. Just as one would want to know more about their idol or passion, Dickinson has questions about nature. She strives to learn more about her muse and is quick to show her curiosity over the topic. She asks, “Who leads the docile spheres withes of supple blue?” (Dickinson).

Another commonly used literary technique in “Bring Me the Sunset in a Cup” was imagery. Her words are so beautifully described that they allow the reader to picture what is taking place in the poem. In line twelve, Dickinson says, “How many trips the tortoise makes, How many cups the bee partakes” (Dickinson). The reader can picture these creatures, and ultimately get the feeling of spring. Both are outdoor animals that come out in warm weather conditions. The reader can also imagine the slow moving tortoise and hear the buzzing of the bee. Dickinson uses imagery to point out the time of day because the story sets in the morning and dawns at the end of the day. She says, “Bring me the sunset in a cup, Reckon the morning’s flagons up” (Dickinson). The comparison of a ‘sunset in a cup’ refers to the coffee that most drink in the morning, and the raising of the flag is also a job for the early morning. To inform the reader that the day is coming to a close, Dickinson says, “And shut the windows down so close, My spirit cannot see? Who’ll let me out some gala day, With implements to fly away” (Dickinson). The closing of the windows shows how the residents are in for the night. She includes her want to be free from the enclosed house, showing once again her love for the great outdoors. The greatest part of the chronological imagery is that Dickinson used items that one might not necessarily consider when thinking of a specific time of day. Raising the flag is a brilliant way to describe the morning, but it’s not what first come to mind. The closing of windows gives readers a wonderful picture to imagine. One that they probably hadn’t considered with night time before. This clever technique of hinting to the reader the time of day by using hidden imagery is what makes Emily Dickinson such a great artist of her craft. She didn’t have to state on paper every point, and instead she allowed her audience to read between the lines.

Dickinson, Emily. “Give Me the Sunset in a Cup”. The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson. Boston: Little, Brown, 1924; Bartleby.com, 2000.

Journal 29

I find that the greatest way for a person to get a true self reflection is to isolate themselves from all others and society. Ralph Waldo Emerson was known for loving nature, and he often took solo journeys into nature when he was in need of inspiration or self reflection. Keeping a journal or taking time to reflect are also great ways to find one's self. This journal requires me to find my own self portrayal. I think it is very important for a person to consider how they are being perceived because that will ultimately affect how another sees you. My personal self reflection is very much based on the values and beliefs that I have. I reflect on the decisions I make and the things I say and do. It is a great way to make sure I am living in the respectful manner that I want to live in. I see myself as a person that can respect others and appreciate the differences in every person. I often find myself saying "Hey, if it makes them happy" because it keeps me from negatively judging others. I would say I’m rather extroverted with some introverted tendencies. I say this because, yes, I know you and feel comfortable around you, I will be a very outgoing and somewhat loud of a person. However, if I’m in a room with a group of people I have never met before, I am more likely to be quiet and somewhat shy. I often reflect on the shy tendencies I sometimes have, and I don’t like them. I want to become a person with a well rounded personality who can walk into a room and chat it up with anyone and everyone without getting completely red in the face. This is an important task to overcome considering I will be leaving for college in a year, and, oh yeah, I want to major in journalism. Being a journalist requires that you are open and friendly because you will have to make a conversation with a person, and it’s more than likely, you just met. I'm happy with the 'self' I have come to be. I think there are other people who could use a good self reflecting to make sure they are being the person they want to be.

Journal 27

I am completely fascinated with Emily Dickinson's ability to match up the lines of her poetry with the rhythm of Amazing Grace. I guess it would be similar to me adding my own lyrics to the melody of a popular song today, but it still is not an easy task. Amazing Grace was a religious song. If my history lessons were correct, I believe the song was created by a slave. It was a very spiritual and inspiring song. Emily Dickinson was considered to be a very spiritual person. She believed in a higher power, but she did not attend church. This was considered obscene during her time period because attending church was considered a must. Like I said, she had faith in a God. She just found the people that attended church to be very hypocritical. I can understand where she is coming from because I was an avid church goer a couple years back. One day I saw a different, ugly side of my pastor, and it affected how I looked at my religious orientation. I haven't been back to that church since, and it makes me self reflect on my personal beliefs compared to the beliefs that I have been preached to all my life. Similar to Emily Dickinson, I still and whole heartedly believe in God.In the lyrics of Amazing Grace, "I once was lost but now I'm found, was blind but now I see."I feel connected with God more now than I ever did sitting in a church pew. I have a connection with a higher power, and I live a life that reflects that without judging others. I think Emily Dickinson was ahead of her time by ignoring conformity and having her own beliefs. She showed that she was a committed Christian through her work and felt no need to show it off her commitment to others.Using the Amazing Grace rhythm for her poetry was her own way of showing her faith. It is inspiring to see a woman with similar beliefs to me take a stand in an introverted manner. She avoided conflict between the judgmental people and chose a different way to share her piece.

Walt Whitman

Although many of Walt Whitman’s poems involved fantasy and dreams, almost every one of them had a realistic moral to be learned. In Whitman’s “To a Stranger”, he ponders upon a person who he recognizes. As common as this person is to him, the protagonist is unable to make out the stranger. He comments, “I have somewhere surely lived a life of joy with you” (Whitman). He is unable to remember the person, let alone their gender because he continues to use the pronouns ‘his’ and ‘her’. He is unable to find the reasoning behind his sudden memory, but in order to ensure that it does not happen again, Whitman says, “I am to see to it that I do not lose you” (Whitman).

Before pursuing his poetry career, Walt Whitman made a livelihood as a journalist. A major code of ethics rule for a journalist is that one must stay unbiased when reporting. Whitman had very outspoken, personal feelings on some of the topics he covered which made it hard for readers to view him as a professional. One critic said, “Mostly he disagreed with owners over political issues, and it was rarely clear whether he quit or was fired” (Oliver). Whitman worked at over 28 newspapers in his career due to the problems that arose from his writing style.

It is by no means wrong for man to have his opinions, but it was not the best reason for one with such views to work as a journalist. It was definitely appropriate for Whitman to find himself through poetry instead. His passion for political issues was similar to that of Henry David Thoreau, a man whose actions against government policies put him in jail. Both men were able to share their perspectives on political struggles and get the attention of others. They’re words were considered by readers. Whether taking away a lesson or learning a new message, readers were always in for some sort of advice when reading a piece from Walt Whitman.

Oliver, Charles M. "Whitman, Walt." Critical Companion to Walt Whitman: A Literary Reference to His Life and Work, Critical Companion. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2005. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc.

Whitman, Walt. "To a Stranger." Poetry Archive. Web. 12 Mar. 2012.

Emily Dickinson

Emily Dickinson used a handful of themes in her poems. The most common themes included lessons of life, love, nature, and time. It is well known that Dickinson was very much an introverted person. She spent a lot of her adulthood as a homebody, working in her room at any chance she got. In fact, she only shared her work with those close to her. Dickinson's poems often shared her deepest feelings and emotions. They differed from the usual literary works of her time because they generally focused on the war taking place at that time. In the poem "The Lightning is a Yellow Fork", Dickinson uses this emotion to explain the fear that many felt from the war and of death. Her ability to give off such emotion by sing relatable topics and clever imagery is outstanding. Dickinson metaphorically compares lightning to a fork. She calls the tool "the awful cutlery" and uses it to show the fear of Americans (Dickinson 341). She explains how the darkness is not fully hidden, and only those of true ignorance do not see it. Those unaware of the issues might as well have no brain at all. It takes intelligence and a point of view for one to stand up for something. They must be inspired and, at the same time, dependable. Each of these traits makes for the perfect activist. Although Dickinson was the quiet type, she wrote with strong emotions and opinions. She might not have been acting out against issues like that of Henry David Thoreau, but the simplicity of her emotional approach did just as much justice. Most of her words weren’t publicly seen until after Emily Dickinson’s death, but her words touched readers just the same. Her topics had strong meanings, but she related them so nicely to other issues that they lasted much longer than her life. Even today Dickinson’s poem could be used by readers to relate to their own lives. She touched upon the simplest problems faced in life to the hardest of loving relationships.

Dickinson, Emily. “The Lightning is a Yellow Fork". Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Ph.D. and Douglas Fisher, Ph.D. Glencoe Literature. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw-Hill Companies, 2009. 341. Print.

Jack London

It’s clear within the first couple paragraphs of Jack London’s “To Build a Fire” that nature was an inspiration for the short story. Natural ideas and the outdoors were commonly mentioned in pieces of the transcendentalist period. Both Henry David Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson described nature and its beauty in their works. It takes a lot of knowledge and research to properly use nature in one’s writing. Jack London does a wonderful job at describing the scenes in the story, and the imagery used makes the reader feel the cold temperature that the protagonist feels throughout the story. It is obvious that he did his research on the below freezing temperatures because he shared many sophisticated facts through the unnamed protagonist.  After falling into the shallow water, the main character has to work at building a fire. London shares his knowledge by giving the reader a simple anatomy lesson. He states, “If his feet are dry, and he fails (to build a fire), he can run along the trail for half a mile and restore his circulation. But the circulation of wet and freezing feet cannot be restored by running when it is seventy-five below” (London 609).

The lesson of “To Build a Fire” could easily be summed up in one word: Determination. The protagonist often refers back to “the old-timer on Sulphur Creek” and the wise advice the man once gave to him. He remembers, “The old-timer had been very serious in laying down the law that no man must travel alone in the Klondike after fifty below. Well, here he was.” (London 609). The man faced serious danger with his wet limbs in the freezing weather, but he continued to take the path to the camp. He struggled to build a fire, but he worked at it as much as he could because it was the only way he would stay warm and, ultimately, survive. He thought about the negative of what could be and described his emotions as “a fear he had never known in his life” (London 613). Although he knew the reality of what was to come, the man was determined to get what he wanted, a trait that was often featured in the transcendentalism period.

London, Jack. “To Build a Fire". Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Ph.D. and Douglas Fisher, Ph.D. Glencoe Literature. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw-Hill Companies, 2009. 603-614. Print.

Edwin Arlington Robinson

It is the classic line that it repeated over and over again, "You Can't Judge a Book by It's Cover." In Richard Corey, the young man is admired by the younger boys and seen with envy by the others. Judging by his actions, the man was depressed, but no one ever saw his emotions underneath his well dressed body and wealthy fingers. As a piece of Realism literature, the poem documents a specific event. It includes emotion as most realism pieces do. It isn't odd to find the author including their own opinions in realism works, and the English book points out that Edwin Arlington Robinson often had emotional characters in his literature. This somewhat biased writing wasn't new to realism authors. In the Transcendentalist period in literature, author such as Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau stated their views on issues in their writings. It wasn't necessarily common for writers to give such strong views, especially if they were aimed negatively at another group, such as the government. The protests that Emerson and Thoreau sent using their words opened doors and acted as influence to the writers of literary periods to come.