But no Man heard Him cry —
He offers His Berry, just the same
To Partridge — and to Boy —
He sometimes holds upon the Fence —
Or struggles to a Tree —
Or clasps a Rock, with both His Hands —
But not for Sympathy —
We — tell a Hurt — to cool it —
This Mourner — to the Sky
A little further reaches — instead —
Brave Black Berry —
F548 (1863) J554
Dickinson has a little fun here anthropomorphizing a blackberry bush – although this one behaves more like a vine, growing along a fence or tree and reaching for the sky. Strictly speaking, the thorn doesn't touch the cane, so it shouldn't hurt, but it would be churlish to insist on it. Better to just imagine the noble plant offering his delicious berry to the first comers despite the thorn in its side.
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| Photo: Tim Whithall, Solant News |
Dickinson gets as much drama as she can out of the scene: the "Brave Black Berry" "holds" on to the fence, he "struggles" up the tree, "clasps" a rock with "both his Hands" – and when the pain still continues, he reaches to the Sky. Shouldn't we all take a lesson from this "Mourner"? Instead, we tend to talk about our hurts to "cool" our pain.
Hey, that works for me – as does a lovely blackberry cobbler, preferably with Mr. Ice Cream.
Dickinson uses a slant rhyme on "cry" throughout the poem: cry, Boy, Tree, Sympathy, Sky, Berry.
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ReplyDeletehmmm... if not Jesus, maybe a saint.
DeleteJesus, hanging on the cross, wore a Roman “Thorn in his side — / But no Man heard Him cry —”. By dying, He offered Eternal Life “just the same” to everyone, poor or rich.
ReplyDeleteFor forty wilderness days Jesus had fought Satan. Sometimes He held “upon the Fence — / Or struggled to a Tree — Or clasped a Rock, with both His Hands — / But not for Sympathy —”.
We ask mother to kiss our hurt, but Jesus, “instead”, reached “to the Sky”.
“Brave Black Berry”.
When I read the first line, I too thought of Christ. But the poem is first and foremost about Emily herself. She tries to find some role models in nature that she could emulate in her struggle to endure her pain. The second stanza is particularly poignant to me because it shows how desperately she needs some support. People usually tell each other about their wounds because it brings relief. Emily can’t. It is not some brave decision on her part; it is just that it is unspeakable. There’s a similar poem, “No Bobolink—reverse His Singing” which ends with the words “Brave Bobolink—“
ReplyDeleteEmily — wears a Thorn in her side —
But no Man heard Her cry —
She offers Her Poems, just the same
To Partridge — and to Boy —
She sometimes holds upon the Fence —
Or struggles to a Tree —
Or clasps a Rock, with both Her Hands —
But not for Sympathy —
We — tell a Hurt — to cool it —
This Mourner — to the Sky
A little further reaches — instead —
Brave Emily
Of course!!! Brilliant analysis!
ReplyDelete