Sunday, January 21, 2007
Emily Dickinson II
Katja
ENGL 48 B
Journal # 7, Dickinson II
21 January, 2007
"Some keep the Sabbath going to Church—/
I keep it, staying at Home—/
With a Bobolink for a Chorister—/
And an Orchard, for a Dome—/
Some keep the Sabbath in Surplice—/
I just wear my wings—/
And instead of tolling the Bell, for Church, /
Our little Sexton—sings. /
God preaches, a noted Clergyman—/
And the sermon is never long, /
So instead of getting to Heaven, at last—/
I’m going all along. /"
(Emily Dickinson 179)
Here, Emily Dickinson speaks of how she spends her devotional time, channeling some Emersonian Transcendentalist ideas about Man being Nature being God.
This poem, number 324, has such a beautiful rhythm I had to quote the whole thing. I think it well illustrates what I tried to get across in my previous journal, about Dickinson’s life being one of devotion. She, perhaps ironically, points out that living life can be a pious activity in itself if one observes the details.
Dickinson, who said that her home was "the definition of God" (166), suggests that any place can be equally holy to Church, no doubt a controversial attitude in Victorian times, and when Dickinson wears her "wings" (line 6), she is an expression of divinity, or even a personification of God. Her ideas bring to mind the Quaker belief where each person is directly connected to God.
The tone of the poem is casual and intimate. In the third stanza, Dickinson seems intimately acquainted with God, and attempts to sway her audience to her brand of Faith with promises of short sermons. She is not combative, but confident and secure in her worship. The poem reminds me of the contemporary trend of mindfulness regarding how to incorporate your philosophy into daily life, This sentiment fits better in with a modern spiritual outlook as opposed to the Jonathan Edwards version of tyrannical religion.
The last two lines are the most interesting. Dickinson convinces me that one does not need to wait for life to pass to reach the Pearly Gates. She does away with human suffering and tedious hours of ruminating over the purposes of life. Emily says the journey is the destination.
ENGL 48 B
Journal # 7, Dickinson II
21 January, 2007
"Some keep the Sabbath going to Church—/
I keep it, staying at Home—/
With a Bobolink for a Chorister—/
And an Orchard, for a Dome—/
Some keep the Sabbath in Surplice—/
I just wear my wings—/
And instead of tolling the Bell, for Church, /
Our little Sexton—sings. /
God preaches, a noted Clergyman—/
And the sermon is never long, /
So instead of getting to Heaven, at last—/
I’m going all along. /"
(Emily Dickinson 179)
Here, Emily Dickinson speaks of how she spends her devotional time, channeling some Emersonian Transcendentalist ideas about Man being Nature being God.
This poem, number 324, has such a beautiful rhythm I had to quote the whole thing. I think it well illustrates what I tried to get across in my previous journal, about Dickinson’s life being one of devotion. She, perhaps ironically, points out that living life can be a pious activity in itself if one observes the details.
Dickinson, who said that her home was "the definition of God" (166), suggests that any place can be equally holy to Church, no doubt a controversial attitude in Victorian times, and when Dickinson wears her "wings" (line 6), she is an expression of divinity, or even a personification of God. Her ideas bring to mind the Quaker belief where each person is directly connected to God.
The tone of the poem is casual and intimate. In the third stanza, Dickinson seems intimately acquainted with God, and attempts to sway her audience to her brand of Faith with promises of short sermons. She is not combative, but confident and secure in her worship. The poem reminds me of the contemporary trend of mindfulness regarding how to incorporate your philosophy into daily life, This sentiment fits better in with a modern spiritual outlook as opposed to the Jonathan Edwards version of tyrannical religion.
The last two lines are the most interesting. Dickinson convinces me that one does not need to wait for life to pass to reach the Pearly Gates. She does away with human suffering and tedious hours of ruminating over the purposes of life. Emily says the journey is the destination.
# posted by Katja @ 3:04 PM 
