tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029797379711350813.post4722556838754605515..comments2024-03-27T11:02:20.107-07:00Comments on the prowling Bee: What would I give to see his face?Susan Kornfeldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05384011972647144453noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029797379711350813.post-27549002099334393352023-03-25T15:30:17.206-07:002023-03-25T15:30:17.206-07:00“What would I give to see his face?”.
To begin, ...“What would I give to see his face?”. <br /><br />To begin, whose face? My money is on Rev. Charles Wadsworth, who captured ED’s heart in 1855 with a sermon at his Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia. His early and only surviving letter to her misspelled her name and expressed heartfelt concern for her (mental?) health. <br /><br />Apparently, she had written him a disturbing letter from Amherst, perhaps about her mother’s health. Sixteen years her senior, married, and father of two, he visited her in Amherst for a memorable afternoon in March 1860. Other poems suggest their (intimate?) conversation that afternoon meant one thing to the Reverend and something else to ED.<br /><br />Comment 2: Neither Johnson nor Franklin list a recipient of this poem. Evidence to the contrary would be helpful.<br /><br />Comment 3: Who is Shylock, with whom ED signs an “ecstatic contract” to see the Reverend’s face for just “one hour”. The pronoun in ED’s manuscript is illegible, with Johnson and Franklin inferring “To Her – who pledges this”, but close inspection easily renders “Him” as well. <br /><br />My guess is Shylock is God, and ED isn’t satisfied with "His" failure to produce Wadsworth’s face. She offered God “My Kingdom's worth of Bliss!”, and all she got in return was “Niggard Grace”.<br />Larry Bnoreply@blogger.com