belonging in emily dickinson

belonging in emily dickinson

When addressing the choice of belonging and being forced to belong, Dickinson drew a strong line through her poetry. Dickinson’s life was riddled by death, with many of her close relatives passing away in her later years. In her poetry, Dickinson challenged the idea of belonging by showing that in the end, everyone will belong in the fact that everyone will die. In the poem “I died for beauty, but was scarce”, Dickinson addresses the idea that we all fear death, and that when all that is left is a pile of bones, we are all the same. Dickinson uses the juxtaposition between plural and singular in the line “And I – For Truth – Themself Are One”. By juxtaposing themself with one, Dickinson shows the strong connection these two strangers have through death. Dickinson is using this unusual grammar to enrich the audience with the idea that nobody can escape death, hence nobody chooses to belong, they are forced to belong from the day they are born.
In contrast, Emily Dickinson also shows the idea of belonging through the use of metaphors and grammar. Dickinson did not blame society for her isolation, rather expressed that her love of nature was stronger. In the poem “I Had Been Hungry, All The Years – ”, Dickinson shows that she did try to belong at one point, but found that she didn’t like the life it gave here, hence belonging on her own terms. To portray this message, Dickinson uses a metaphor for her discomfort in the line “Myself felt ill – and odd – As berry - of a mountain bush – Transplanted – to a road – ”. The metaphor is Dickinson putting across the message that when she did belong, she felt strange, with her connection with nature uncommon in the society. Dickinson also uses dashes to show the confused state that she experienced when she belonged. By doing this, Dickinson shows the reader that if you don’t belong, you can choose on your own terms to go your own way.
Another concept which is vital to acknowledge is that...