tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029797379711350813.post8050997995659175167..comments2024-03-29T00:07:13.458-07:00Comments on the prowling Bee: Is it true, dear Sue?Susan Kornfeldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05384011972647144453noreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029797379711350813.post-8028415558573350442023-02-04T15:43:03.092-08:002023-02-04T15:43:03.092-08:00For reasons unknown to me, Franklin uses the wrong...For reasons unknown to me, Franklin uses the wrong word in Line 5:<br /><br />"If I could shut him up"<br /><br />ED's manuscript reads VERY CLEARLY:<br /><br />"If you could shut him up",<br /><br />which changes the tone dramatically from one of ED's fear in meeting Susan's newborn, to a sweet request:<br /><br />If you could shut him up<br />In a Coffee Cup,<br />Or tie him to a pin<br />Till I got in –<br />Or make him fast<br />To "Toby's" fist –<br />Hist! Whist! I'd come!<br /><br /><br />Larry Bnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029797379711350813.post-80145730342216386092022-12-23T06:03:31.664-08:002022-12-23T06:03:31.664-08:00The second page of the F189 manuscript, containing...The second page of the F189 manuscript, containing the last line of the poem and the signature "Emily," is now missing. That page also carried a family note identifying the occasion and explaining that Toby was the cat (Franklin 1998). Johnson (1955) apparently saw the second page and tells us that Sue notated below the poem, “written on Ned's birth – day” [19 June 1861].Larry Bnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029797379711350813.post-61490396260520681902022-12-21T14:18:52.110-08:002022-12-21T14:18:52.110-08:00Like a new father, ED is bewildered, nervous, worr...Like a new father, ED is bewildered, nervous, worried, timorous, insecure, uneasy, uncertain, and premonitive that her life has changed forever, so she dons her clever poetic humor mask, hoping to hide her real feelings.Larry Bhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02810899482852120751noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029797379711350813.post-29602628112092748622022-11-30T06:31:01.785-08:002022-11-30T06:31:01.785-08:00@anonymous I like that interpretation! It's a ...@anonymous I like that interpretation! It's a double entendre of sorts, a playful and subtle way of teasing, are there two(men in your life?) and it also rhymes with<br />sue..Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029797379711350813.post-61659166107430060992022-05-25T16:27:30.913-07:002022-05-25T16:27:30.913-07:00tie him to the cat's paw or otherwise attach h...tie him to the cat's paw or otherwise attach him. It's light-hearted.Susan Kornfeldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05384011972647144453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029797379711350813.post-58129103809586001612022-05-25T09:13:24.823-07:002022-05-25T09:13:24.823-07:00What does “make him fast” to the cat mean? My firs...What does “make him fast” to the cat mean? My first language isn’t English and I’m struggling to find a meaning in this context to the word. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029797379711350813.post-43378507009111542932022-02-16T12:48:41.170-08:002022-02-16T12:48:41.170-08:00True. I believe that's a normal reaction for s...True. I believe that's a normal reaction for some people. I'm not fond of kids. And certainly don't like handling babies. They're so fragile.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029797379711350813.post-91714035978819745802022-02-03T15:41:53.437-08:002022-02-03T15:41:53.437-08:00I think it's lighthearted. Many people are afr...I think it's lighthearted. Many people are afraid of being clumsy when handling a new born.Susan Kornfeldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05384011972647144453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029797379711350813.post-5412080323760801342022-02-03T10:55:16.230-08:002022-02-03T10:55:16.230-08:00When I first read this I was thinking of a pregnan...When I first read this I was thinking of a pregnant Sue, and Emily not wanting to hurt the fetus, but of course I was thinking like a now 22nd century person which would know the sex of the baby before being born. They of the 19th would not, so why is she afraid to come over, and wants the baby made fast - in a coffee cup, or pinned - and only then she will come over? Men are often afraid of holding a baby, but Emily? There is some strange, or at least unnatural nature here with her.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00725261030659667439noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029797379711350813.post-38682309232055551662022-01-10T18:26:01.396-08:002022-01-10T18:26:01.396-08:00My first impression was that Emily refers two of S...My first impression was that Emily refers two of Sue because her son had part of her then, he would would look like her, be like her in certain way. There were two of Sue and she would love both of them.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029797379711350813.post-9431030333537981012022-01-06T07:50:57.354-08:002022-01-06T07:50:57.354-08:00Exactly what went thru my mind when I read this li...Exactly what went thru my mind when I read this line. ".. Are there two?"<br />It's like she's in awe that there are now two of them (Sue and the baby) in her life. <br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029797379711350813.post-17828603390138258162021-11-11T10:18:05.570-08:002021-11-11T10:18:05.570-08:00I like this idea, too. Thanks.I like this idea, too. Thanks.Susan Kornfeldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05384011972647144453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029797379711350813.post-44653119955301477192021-11-11T01:57:41.972-08:002021-11-11T01:57:41.972-08:00I think it refers to men. 'Are there two [men ...I think it refers to men. 'Are there two [men in your life now]?' Emily must've felt awful about her brother marrying Sue, and having eventually gotten over it, the surprise of a baby boy may have come with some playful jealousy. Sue's marriage to a man is likely to have put a strain on their own relationship. Having had Sue stolen by a man once was a pain, and twice - a heartbreak. There are now two men in her life.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029797379711350813.post-79909301870281577112018-02-20T08:21:51.734-08:002018-02-20T08:21:51.734-08:00I agree. Not sure why I was so unclear about it wh...I agree. Not sure why I was so unclear about it when I wrote this!Susan Kornfeldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05384011972647144453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4029797379711350813.post-10640396135418638192018-02-20T00:39:27.580-08:002018-02-20T00:39:27.580-08:00When Dickinson says "there are two"? she...When Dickinson says "there are two"? she could just mean the mother and the baby - there used to be one person, and now there are two.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com