Before I Got My Eye Put Out - The Poetry of Emily Dickinson: Crash Course English Literature #8

Summary

In this Crash Course Literature video, John Green delves into the life and work of Emily Dickinson, exploring her complex relationship with death, faith, and individuality. Through an analysis of Dickinson's poetry, Green highlights her paradoxical nature and the way she intertwines themes of life, death, and perception. The video also offers insights into Dickinson's reclusive life, her symbolic use of the color white, and her unique writing style, marked by slant rhymes and dashes. With a deep dive into her iconic poem 'I heard a fly buzz when I died,' Green showcases Dickinson's exploration of death, faith, and the power of sight.

Takeaways

• 😀 Emily Dickinson was a 19th-century American poet known for her paradoxical and complex approach to faith, death, and self-expression.
• 😀 Dickinson's poems are often written in a meter that can be sung to tunes like 'If I Could Buy the World a Coke' or 'Yellow Rose of Texas'.
• 😀 Her work frequently explores themes of death, life, faith, and doubt, creating a tension between personal agency and divine power.
• 😀 Dickinson's poetry reflects a conflicted American worldview: a belief in individual exceptionalism while also grappling with faith in an omnipotent God.
• 😀 Despite being reclusive, Dickinson wrote nearly 800 poems between 1858 and 1865, though only a handful were published during her lifetime.
• 😀 She was considered eccentric by her local community, often seen wearing only white and rarely leaving her home, yet her white attire symbolized passion and intensity.
• 😀 Dickinson often used dashes in her writing, which some critics interpret as representing the mind's workings or as a punctuation style meant to suggest uncertainty or ambiguity.
• 😀 In her poem 'I Heard a Fly Buzz When I Died', Dickinson presents death as a paradox, combining the expected arrival of God with the mundane disruption of a fly.
• 😀 The poem uses a rhythmic and metric structure with a rhyme scheme of ABCB, incorporating slant rhymes that create a sense of discomfort and unresolved tension.
• 😀 The closing rhyme in the poem ('me' and 'see') provides a moment of closure, contrasting the previous open-ended lines and offering a brief sense of peace amid death's ambiguity.

Q & A

What is the central theme of Emily Dickinson's poetry as discussed in the video?

The central theme of Emily Dickinson's poetry, as discussed in the video, revolves around complex relationships such as those between life and death, faith and doubt, and the power of God versus individual power. Her work challenges readers to think deeply about these contrasts and the human experience.

Why is Emily Dickinson considered paradoxical by Joyce Carol Oates?

Joyce Carol Oates considers Emily Dickinson 'The most paradoxical of poets' because Dickinson's poetry often presents contradictions within a single poem. For instance, in one poem, she appears to critique faith while simultaneously acknowledging its potential value in different circumstances.

How does Dickinson use the concept of sight in her poetry?

Dickinson uses the concept of sight not just as literal vision but as a metaphor for understanding and the expression of self. In poems like 'I heard a fly buzz when I died' and 'Before I got my eye put out', sight represents both physical observation and a deeper form of ownership and power.

What role does death play in Dickinson's work?

Death is a central theme in Dickinson's work, and she explores it in various ways: as a suitor, a guide, and even a mundane force represented by a fly. Her treatment of death often invites contemplation on its nature and the experience of dying.

Why did Emily Dickinson rarely leave her home in later years?

Emily Dickinson became increasingly reclusive as she grew older, often retreating to her room and rarely leaving her house. She had a deep, personal engagement with death, which was a recurring theme in her life and work, and she reportedly spoke to visitors only from behind closed doors.

How did Emily Dickinson's use of white clothing differ from conventional symbolism?

While white is often associated with purity or innocence, Dickinson used the color white to represent passion and intensity. For her, white symbolized the 'white heat' of a soul's fervor, rather than the traditional associations of innocence or ghosts.

What is significant about Dickinson's use of dashes in her poetry?

Dickinson's use of dashes in her poetry has sparked various interpretations. Some see them as a stylistic choice to mirror the fragmented way the mind works, while others argue they serve as a punctuation stronger than a comma but weaker than a period. These dashes contribute to the tension and unresolved feeling often present in her work.

How does the fly in 'I heard a fly buzz when I died' symbolize death?

In the poem 'I heard a fly buzz when I died', the fly symbolizes an unexpected interruption at the moment of death. Instead of a peaceful or divine arrival, the fly with its 'uncertain stumbling buzz' disrupts the narrator's transition, representing the mundane or chaotic aspects of death.

What are 'slant rhymes' in Dickinson's poetry?

Slant rhymes in Dickinson's poetry refer to words that almost rhyme, but not quite. For example, in the poem 'I heard a fly buzz when I died', words like 'room' and 'storm' are slant rhymes, as they share similar sounds but don't fully rhyme. This lack of resolution enhances the unsettling nature of her poetry.

What is the significance of the rhyme scheme in 'I heard a fly buzz when I died'?

The rhyme scheme in 'I heard a fly buzz when I died' follows an ABCB pattern, with slant rhymes in the first two stanzas. The use of a full rhyme in the final stanza ('me' and 'see') offers a sense of closure at the moment of death, providing a contrast to the earlier unresolved lines and the discomforting theme of the poem.