tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029797379711350813.post1373371561636111264..comments2024-03-28T14:04:54.557-07:00Comments on the prowling Bee: We'll pass without the partingSusan Kornfeldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05384011972647144453noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029797379711350813.post-43678628385756116022023-10-25T20:00:37.219-07:002023-10-25T20:00:37.219-07:00Thanks, Larry, for filling in the blanks!
Thanks, Larry, for filling in the blanks!<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029797379711350813.post-31679706257046326932023-10-25T16:42:49.735-07:002023-10-25T16:42:49.735-07:00“Why the black ribbon?” Perhaps ED’s inclination t...“Why the black ribbon?” Perhaps ED’s inclination to drama, possibly an insider joke or a parting shot, who knows? Only Emily and she ain’t talkin.Larry Bhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02810899482852120751noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029797379711350813.post-74286235974556412372023-10-25T16:31:02.952-07:002023-10-25T16:31:02.952-07:00Maria Avery Howard
BIRTH: 1 Sep 1833, Aurora, Cay...Maria Avery Howard<br /><br />BIRTH: 1 Sep 1833, Aurora, Cayuga County, New York, USA<br />MARRIED: July 5, 1864, at Aurora, William Washington Howard<br />DEATH 14 Jan 1893 (aged 59) Aurora, Cayuga County, New York, USA<br /><br />Susan Gilbert (Dickinson) lived with her aunt, Sophia Van Vranken, in Geneva, New York, 34 miles from Aurora, From 1841, when her father died and she became an orphan, until the late 1840s. She then lived in Amherst, Massachusetts, with her sister Harriet and brother-in-law William Cutler. She chose to marry Austin Dickinson in Geneva, rather than Amherst. The Avery and Van Avery families likely knew each other and Maria was probably visiting Sue.<br />Larry Bhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02810899482852120751noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029797379711350813.post-13043225762519677002014-01-08T07:56:37.831-08:002014-01-08T07:56:37.831-08:00I think you are right -- at least as far as the bl...I think you are right -- at least as far as the black ribbon. As a gesture of love and loss it makes sense. The poisonous oleander, however, is more troublesome. It is extremely drought tolerant, so perhaps Farr has the better interpretation. The love of the two friends can endure the drought of absence, even if the absence be permanent.Susan Kornfeldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05384011972647144453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029797379711350813.post-47107727353960178782013-12-21T08:51:06.437-08:002013-12-21T08:51:06.437-08:00 I agree with your reading -- except I doubt t... I agree with your reading -- except I doubt that ED intended some irreparable break with the recipient of this poem. She reflected on death deeply and viewed death and parting as the same -- consigning a person to static memory. So, parting was a cause for mourning. <br /><br /> ED was unconventional -- and it would be impossible to know how Mrs. Howard might have received the gift. But I am sure that it was intended as a gesture expressing love and loss.<br /><br /> Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com