Emily Dickinson as a Poet
Emily Dickinson was born in 1830 to a prominent family. She was haunted by the menace of death throughout her life. Although she had written 800 poems between 1858 to 1865, it was discovered by her sister that Emily had written around 1800 poems in her lifetime which she didn’t want to get published. Emily Dickinson is more complex and interesting by the fact that her poems sounded like hymns and throughout her life we can see her faith waxing and waning in her poetry. Her work reflects a conflicted American world view. Thus she is called ” The most paradoxical of poets; The very poet of paradox“.
She rarely left her room and spent most of her time writing letters and poems. The constant pressure to eyes and the dim light had also damaged her vision and later it was discovered that she was suffering from Exotropia- a hereditary disease causes eye strain, headache and other eyesight issues. This poem addresses her life with loss of sight.
Poem Before I got my eye put out
Before I got my eye put out –
I liked as well to see
As other creatures, that have eyes –
And know no other way –
But were it told to me, Today,
That I might have the Sky
For mine, I tell you that my Heart
Would split, for size of me –
The Meadows – mine –
The Mountains – mine –
All Forests – Stintless stars –
As much of noon, as I could take –
Between my finite eyes –
The Motions of the Dipping Birds –
The Morning’s Amber Road –
For mine – to look at when I liked,
The news would strike me dead –
So safer – guess – with just my soul
Opon the window pane
Where other creatures put their eyes –
Incautious – of the Sun –
Line by line meaning
Emily Dickinson is known for her complexity and depth in her poems, Before I got my eye put out is also one among her poems which seems simple and easy to read yet has the spiritual touch hidden in it. Though her poems sound personal, many believe that her poems referring I most of the time was not just confined to herself but it could be anybody.
In general, poem appears as if a blind is addressing her lost vision and how it has effected her, leaving both positive and negative shades in her life.
Before I got my eye put out –
I liked as well to see
As other creatures, that have eyes –
And know no other way –
The poem starts with the word before, it indicates that there are two phase of time described in the poem that is past and the present. In the first stanza she speaks about the past, when she had her good eyesight. Just as other creatures poet also enjoyed the pleasures of having sight. The word as well becomes prominent as it is more commonly used in speaking than in writing. So she keeps it as a poem more informal and confessional. As well word also shows the similarity she had with others when she had her eyesight.
Now, why does she use creatures there? Is she referring just to to humans or every animal that is capable of seeing? Vision is the most primary and inevitable organ in any organism so by the use of word creatures she is stressing that she is handicapped. And know no other way, this line speaks about how creatures are dependent on their vision, most of their life skills are adoptive to eyesight. Thus, creatures with eyesight are not aware of leading life without vision.
But were it told to me, Today,
That I might have the Sky
For mine, I tell you that my Heart
Would split, for size of me –
In the line what is told to her is not mentioned, but it is understood that she is speaking about a chance of regaining sight and it’s consequences. If at all the poet regains her sight today, she would claim that the sky is hers. But she is not sure because the word might is included in the line. Sky can be possible advantages she gets from eyes or it is the feeling of power of vision that is limitless as sky. It also symbolizes freedom and independence.
Though the poet wants to get back her eyesight but she fears her heart might break into pieces. This is because she thinks that the beauty of the world is so marvelous that she cannot bear. For size of me, signifies that the power of vision is too much to her capability.
The Meadows – mine –
The Mountains – mine –
All Forests – Stintless stars –
As much of noon, as I could take –
Between my finite eyes –
According to Emily Dickinson the strength of observation is associated with ownership. The meadows, mountains, forests, stintless stars and noon belong to her. In 19th Century America, the idea that an eye, possibly an female eye could own the nature and sky seems radical which actually under the control of God.Here, except noon rest all are symbols for vastness, independent and belong to nature.
The reference of noon is unclear here, might be that she is comparing noon to her own life, that is the limited period of time to live. She also says that if she had sight it would be finite and not infinite. So it is opposite to meadows, mountains, forest or stars. In general poet is making a point that human is nothing against mighty nature. In this stanza, first letters are in the pattern T,T,A,A and B.
The Motions of the Dipping Birds –
The Morning’s Amber Road –
For mine – to look at when I liked,
The news would strike me dead –
The speed of the birds mostly dipping themselves on the surface of water, the dark yellow colored scenery of road in the morning are felt as hers. She could look at them whenever she felt and the news would strike her dead. It isn’t clear that which news in particular is mentioned by her. With reference to the upper lines it can be assumed that the news is something related to nature. Except the third line all the other lines start with definite article The.
So safer – guess – with just my soul
Opon the window pane
Where other creatures put their eyes –
Incautious – of the Sun –
In the last stanza of the poem we realise that she speaks about present. Now it is safer she believes. When we have capacity and opportunity, we tend to explore more and there might be the chances of failures, loss or injuries. Thus, as she is blind she will live up to her limits and doesn’t take risks like people with eyesight, yet she will be safer than people with eyesight.
It is her guess that most if the creatures try to see through their eyes from a window but she uses her soul to observe. The word just emphasizes again that she only has soul and not sight. Windows are a medium to another world, opportunities, way for observation and understanding. As she is safe, it is she who incautiously can reach out for Sun. Use of word incautious is made to say that Sun cannot hurt her eyes as it happens to others. And also Sun is a ray of hope, bright side of a day. But it is not mentioned that she is incautious, the dashes help us to interpret so.
Analysis of Before I got my eye put put
The poem was written in 1862 and it is a lamentation on loosing her sight, but it also applicable to death of a soul. It is a four stanza poem with four lines in each, except in the third stanzas with five lines. There is no regular rhyme scheme in the poem. The commonly observed themes are nature, death, acceptance of loss of sight and spirituality. It also feels that somewhere the poet feels envy for others who have the power of vision.
The importance to nature is highly noticeable in the poem. The way she observes nature and uses it as a key in her poetry. Commonly referred words in most of her poems are light, birds, windows and insect. To her, writing about nature is celebrating the beauty of nature.
The reference to death is also clearly visible in the poem. Emily Dickinson frankly and objectively writes about death. Neither sanitized or romanticised her accounts of death and dying often chronical the moments of a living person ceases to exist. It is the moment of unbecoming. She refuses to look away from a person who is died.
Some specialties of the poem are that the starting letter of each line is capital and dashes are prominent. This is a common feature in Emily Dickinson’s poem. Many critics believe that capital letters are used for personifying common nouns and dashes represent the missing words in the lines. The missing words could be anything and this allows the reader’s independence to apply words according to individual interpretation.
In this poem, some of the last words like Sky, Heart, Dipping Birds, Today, Amber roads and Sun are also capital. Creatures, eyes, like and mine are repeated in the poem. Seeing is very significant in it and so it feels like eye and I are mixed. The title also is with this shuffle.
Poetic Devices
* Alliteration:
The Meadows – mine
The Mountains- mine
* Assonance:
I got my eye put out
That I might have the sky
* Enjambment:
Would have eyes/ And know no other way.
For mine, I tell you that my Heart/ Would split.
For mine, to look at when I liked, the news would strike me dead.
