What
is – "Paradise" –
Who
live there –
Are
they "Farmers" –
Do
they "hoe" –
Do
they know that this is "Amherst" –
And
that I – am coming – too –
Do
they wear "new shoes" –
in "Eden" –
Is
it always pleasant – there –
Won't
they scold us – when we're hungry
–
Or
tell God – how cross we are –
You
are sure there's such a person
As
"a Father" – in the sky
–
So
if I get lost – there – ever –
Or
do what the Nurse calls "die" –
I
shan't walk the "Jasper" –
barefoot –
Ransomed
folks – won't laugh at me –
Maybe
– "Eden" a'n't so
lonesome
As
New England used to be!
F241
(1861) 215
We
learn here that Dickinson found New England “lonesome.” Her letters and her biographical material indicate that she was very social when young but increasingly withdrew. She had few peers. Sue was once her dear friend and peer but the relationship soured (although ended on friendly terms). So perhaps she did feel lonesome. Once we work backwards in the poem from there we see other glimpses of things the poet might find in Amherst but
hopes she won’t find in “Paradise”: old shoes (probably standing in for old
clothing in general), bad weather, people getting cross because they’re hungry,
and – perhaps most interesting – people who laugh at her (implied ‘you’).
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This child may also be wondering if Eden is less lonely and more pleasant |
Dickinson
uses as child’s voice, worrying about being scolded or getting lost, and being not
quite sure about the word “die.” She begins by asking a set of childish
questions – leading to a very serious one: do the heavenly folk know that the
speaker is coming? This question is at the heart of much Christian and
theological debate: are we pre-ordained to be saved or to make the choices that lead us – or not – to Heaven? Do we have the
ability as mortals to change direction so that even if you’re not expected
there you can still make your way to Paradise?
In
the third stanza a hypothetical “You” is introduced. Another important question
is directed at this you: Are you sure “there’s such a person / as ‘a Father.’” For if there is no Father then what
happens once you die? You might get lost in some post-mortal limbo.
The
poem is written in common ballad or hymn form: four-line stanzas in alternating
tetrameter and trimeter. In the
first stanza, Dickinson has subdivided the first tetrameter and trimeter lines
into two shorter lines. Although ballad form is usually iambic, Dickinson makes
generous use of trochees. This gives the force of insistent questioning: What
is… Who live… Do they…Is it, etc. The tone is a bit pushier than if it were
phrased iambically (e.g., “Do Farmers live there”).
You're right, this makes me think that Dickinson didn't enjoy life in Amherst when she wrote it. Are ransomed folks the ones who've been saved and why are they laughing at anyone, especially her? Also, is jasper a symbol for walking barefoot through the flames of hell?
ReplyDeleteJasper is a heavenly building stone:
DeleteRevelation 21:18-19King James Version (KJV)
18 And the building of the wall of it was of jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass.
19 And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald;
Truly a inspiring poem -ajh
DeleteHow do you divide the lines that have 5 syllables? For exemple line 1?is that an trochaic tetrameter
ReplyDeleteIf you take the first two lines and count them as one, it is in iambic. If you take the first line by itself, it would be dimeter (two feet) with a feminine ending -- an extra syllable left hanging at the end.
Delete