A full, and perfect time—
The Summer closed upon itself
In Consummated Bloom—
The Corn, her furthest kernel filled
Before the coming Flail—
When These—leaned into Perfectness—
Through Haze of Burial—
-Fr822, J962, 1864, Fascicle 40
This poem seems, at first, to be a meditation on two “summer” deaths. We know there were two because in another version of this poem the penultimate line reads, “When these two leaned in.” Summer here could mean actual summer, but it could also mean, in the language of poetry, the summer portion of their lives. In other words, this poem could be read as a meditation on dying young.
There is something so haunting when someone dies young, when someone is “cut down in their prime.” But this poem is not dreary. Rather “They” died in full bloom, before having to deal with the “coming Flail” of the reaper’s scythe, which is to say, not having to deal with old age.
This poem hit me personally because last night, before having read it, I had a dream in which I was watching YouTube and saw a video of my friend Mikhal, who drowned in his mid-twenties. In the dream he was riding on a carousel and laughing. I was moved upon waking by just how beautiful Mikhal was when he died. So this poem really struck me. Mikhal’s "summer closed in upon itself in consummated bloom.” The poem actually made me feel less sad about his early death. He may have missed out on a lot of good living, but he also avoided the “flail” of the thresher too. He “leaned into Perfectness.”
The version of the poem with "Two" in it was given to Emily's cousins Louisa and Frances Norcross, so it is likely about the death of friends or family. But there is another possible way to read this poem, which is not about actual death at all. The “They,” the “Two,” in this poem could also refer to a couple who have “died” into each other in “consummated Bloom.”
“They died” suggests the kind of ecstatic merging often described in romantic terms. The idea that summer “closed upon itself” in bloom mirrors two lovers coming together. The corn is fully ripe, just like the body when desire is at its furthest reach. The “coming Flail” represents either the end of innocence or, perhaps, a future separation. “Leaning into Perfectness” could be read as a romantic phrase. And “Haze of Burial” evokes a dissolving of boundaries, a fading of self into the other. It’s dreamlike, like the spiritual aftermath of intimacy.
Either way, whether about actual death, or romance, the idea of summer closing in on itself in consummated bloom points to a kind of fulfillment that feels.. eternal.
-/)dam Wade l)eGraff
Either way, whether about actual death, or romance, the idea of summer closing in on itself in consummated bloom points to a kind of fulfillment that feels.. eternal.
-/)dam Wade l)eGraff
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ReplyDeleteThanks, Larry. Charles or Sue or some other tall stalk of corn, who knows?
ReplyDeleteCorny, but your tall corn metaphor and my dirty mind got a good giggle going. I'm sure you didn't mean it that way.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete822.1864.Midsummer, was it, when They died—
ReplyDeleteI prefer ED’s alternate phrase in Line 7, “When These Two – leaned in Perfectness —” but would omit the first hyphen: “When these Two leaned in Perfectness —”.
Midsummer, was it, when They died—
A full, and perfect time—
The Summer closed upon itself
In Consummated Bloom—
The Corn, her furthest kernel filled
Before the coming Flail—
When These Two leaned in Perfectness —
Through Haze of Burial —
On ‘The Prowling Bee’ blog about this poem, Adam Wade DeGraff offers three interpretations of ‘Midsummer, was it, when they died’:
1. “[A general] meditation on two ‘summer’ deaths”,
,
2. “The version of the poem with 'Two' in it was given to Emily's cousins Louisa and Frances Norcross, so it is likely about the death of friends or family.”,
3. “The ‘They’, the ‘Two’ in this poem could also refer to a couple who have ‘died’ into each other in ‘consummated Bloom’.”
https://bloggingdickinson.blogspot.com/2025/07/midsummer-was-it-when-they-died.html
Of course, my take is ‘Interpretation 3’, the sexual one, but I would add some biographical details:
The events in this poem fit well into ED’s biographical experience, in particular, her romantic (?), spiritual relationship with Reverend Charles Wadsworth, superstar minister of Arch Street Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia. ED heard him preach one sermon in late March 1855 and, according to her niece Martha Dickinson Bianci, fell into head-over-heels love:
“Certainly in that first witchery of an undreamed Southern springtime Emily was overtaken – doomed once and forever by her own heart. It was instantaneous, overwhelming, impossible.” (Bianci 1924)
After hearing Wadsworth’s sermon, ED initiated a correspondence that culminated during summer 1860 when he visited her for a “Midsummer” afternoon in Amherst. Four years later, ED wrote this poem, ‘Midsummer, was it, when they died’. I think Adam DeGraff’s third interpretation is right, ED and Wadsworth “died” in the Shakespearian sense.
The euphoria of ED’s midsummer 1860 rendezvous lasted until September 1861, when Wadsworth let her know he planned to move to San Francisco. He gave her no reason and did not say goodbye when he sailed from New York Harbor on May 1, 1862. After hearing his plans, ED’s brain began bipolar cycles whose valleys bordered on suicide. As she told Higginson in her second letter to him (JL338, April 28, 1862):
ReplyDelete“. . . . .
“You asked ‘how old I was?’ I made no verse, but one or two – until this winter – Sir –.
I had a terror – since September – I could tell to none – and so I sing, as the Boy does by the Burying Ground, because I am afraid –”
. . . . .
My candidates for suicide poems (and Franklin’s 1998 estimate of copy date) include:
1. Fr252, ‘I think just how my shape will rise –’, (“about 1861”),
2. Fr279, ‘Of all the Souls that stand create –’, (“about second half of 1861”),
3. Fr308, ‘A shady friend – for Torrid days –’, (“about early 1862”),
4. Fr320, ‘There's a certain slant of light’ (“about early 1862"),
5. Fr340, ‘I felt a Funeral, in my Brain’ (“about summer 1862”),
6. Fr386, ‘Taking up the fair Ideal’ (“about autumn 1862”), and
7. Fr784 ‘I sometimes drop it, for a Quick –’ (“about late 1863”).
On the other hand, during her cycles’ peaks, her productivity was prodigious. For example, during 1862-1865, ED’s productivity was 849 poems in 1461 days, which is about one poem every two days. During one year, 1863, she wrote 295 poems, an average of one poem every 30 hours.
What malevolent muse sent ED inspirations at that mind-murdering rate for 365 straight days? What poet wouldn’t gladly die to receive inspirations at that rate?
To put ED’s experience during that 1860 “Midsummer’s" rendezvous into modern perspective, Baylor University research (Baylor 2026) shows that experienced ministers know well their sexual power over troubled female congregants and should, but frequently don’t, guard against getting too familiar with them during counseling sessions.
PS1. Philadelphia is 250 miles south of Amherst; to someone who grew up in Amherst, late March is “Southern springtime”.
PS2. Many modern biographers consider Bianci’s memories unreliable, but several contemporary sources confirm her memory of ED’s 1855 “whichery”.
Baylor University, 2026, The Reality of Pastoral Power (Google AI overviews, downloaded 2026-03-05)
Bianchi, Martha Dickinson, 1924, The Life and Letters of Emily Dickinson, Houghton Mifflin Co. p. 66 of 420.
Franklin, RW (ed.), 1998, The Poems of Emily Dickinson, 3 vols. Harvard University Press, 1654 pp.
The Reality of Pastoral Power
ReplyDeleteMisuse of Position: Sexual contact in ministry is recognized as an abuse of power, not an “affair,” because the power differential renders true, meaningful consent from a vulnerable congregant impossible.
High Risk and Frequency: Studies suggest that between 20% and 39% of surveyed clergy have admitted to sexual contact with parishioners.
Vulnerability Exploitation: Clergy abuse often targets people in crisis, such as those experiencing marital problems, grief, or trauma, as they are most in need of support.
Awareness vs. Action: While many ministers understand the theological prohibitions against adultery, they often fail to implement the practical, daily boundaries needed to prevent situations where sexual sin is easily initiated.
The “Black Pit” of Entitlement: Some ministers fall into the trap of using their role to gain sexual access, often by appearing as a “tired minister” needing care, or by grooming individuals through, for example, long-term, cross-gender counseling sessions.
Prevention Methods: Those who successfully guard against this abuse often use strategies like:
Strict Counseling Boundaries: Avoiding long-term, private, one-on-one counseling with members of the opposite sex.
Peer Accountability: Regular supervision and consultation with colleagues.
Self-Awareness: Acknowledging personal needs and addressing them outside the congregation.
Systemic Failure: When boundary violations occur, churches sometimes prioritize protecting their reputation over the safety of vulnerable members, allowing predators to continue their behavior.”