I HEARD A FLY BUZZ WHEN I DIED .

I HEARD A FLY BUZZ WHEN I DIED .

Emily Dickinson

Emily Dickinson (183 - 1886) regarded as one of America’s greatest poets, is also well known for her unusual life of self imposed social seclusion .Living a life of simplicity and seclusion .she year wrote poetry of great power ; questioning the nature of immortality and death, with at times almost mantric quality .Her different lifestyle created an aura ; often romanticized, and frequently Emily Dickinson is remembered of her unique poetry. Within short ,compact phrases she expressed far- reaching ides ; amidst paradox and uncertainty her poetry has an undeniable capacity to move provoke .

Early Life Dickinson

Emily Dickinson was born on 10th December , 1830 , in the town of Amherst, Massachusetts . Amherst, 50 miles from, Boston ,had become well known as a Centre of Education , based around Amherst College. Her family were pillars of the local community ; their house known as " the Homestead or " mansion " was often used as a meeting place for distinguished visitors including Ralph Waldo Emerson . ( Although it unlikely he met with Emily Dickson )

As a young child Emily proved to be a bright and conscientious student . She showed a sharp intelligence ,and was able to create many original writings of rhyming stories , delighting  her fellow classmates . Emily 's father was strict and keep to bring up his children in the proper way .Emily's said of her father , "his heart was pure and terrible " His strictness can be shown through his censorship f reading material; Walt Whitman for example was considered " too appropriate' and novels had to be smuggled in the house ,.In response, Emily was highly differential too her father and other male figures of authority . but in her own way she loved and respected her father. Even if at times , he appeared to e aloof .At a  young age ,she said she wished to be " best little girl " However despite her attempts to pleas and be well though to g, she was also at the same time independently minded and quite willing to refuse the prevailing orthodoxy’s on certain issues .

RELIGIOUS INFLUENCE ON THE POETRY OF EMILY DECKINSON

A crucial issue at the issue of religion ,which to Emily was the "all important questions " the antecedents of the Dickinson’s can be traced back to the early puritan settlers ,who left Lincolnshire in the late 17 the century .Her antecedents had left  England l, so they could practice religious freedom in America. In the nineteenth century ,religious was still the dominant issue of the day .The east coast ,in particular ,saw a revival of Unitarianism .Amherst College itself was founded with the intention of training ministers to spread the Christian word . Calvinism by incrimination , Emily Dickinson would probably have been more at ease with the looser and more inclusive ideology of Unitarianism . However, the "great Revival " as it was known , pushed the Calvinist view to greatest prominence .

REIGIOUS BELIEF EMILY DICKINSON

The Calvinist approach to religion believed that men were inherently sinful and most humans were doomed to hell .there was only a small number who would be saved and this could only be achieved by the adherent proclaiming his faith in Jesus Christ ,as the true savior . there was subtle , but concerted effort ,to encourage  people to declare themselves saved . both , at school and at college , there would have been much of this subtle pressure put on Emily to join the " saved " ; but this she never did, . Her father was not too concerned with the religious views of his children even though , later in his life , he also accepted this belief. thus , on the crucial issue of the day Emily was relatively isolated . amongst other reasons, Emily could never accept the doctrine of " original sin " despite remaining true to her own convictions, Emily was left with a sense of exclusion from the established religion ,and these sentiments inform much of her poetry .there is request orthodox  religion , there is much in her poetry which reveals a profoundly religious temperament .for Emily religious experience was not a simple beauty of nature ,and the experiences of ecstatic joy . yet , although her poetry expressed intense inner experiences this separation from established religion is a factor in her uncertainties and fluctuations in sentiment ,evident an may poems .

Emily was a bright conscientious student. At mount Holyoke female  seminary in South Hadley , she was able to study a range of subjects form Latin to English Literature . However , her studies were often interrupted by ill  health ,.After a persistent cough developed . her father decided to remove her from college and bring her back home .thus she left without any formal qualifications ,but she at least been able to broaden her education and vocabulary .

Emily Dickinson 's later seclusion from society give an impression of a life of austerity and simplicity .this had romanticize ,with the frequently cited preference for her wearing all white dress. However , Emily was both a keen artist and a accomplished musician . In her college years she enjoyed singing ; making reference to the similarities  between poetry and singing . She also had a sharp eye for beautiful art ; this visual sense and her appreciation of bright colors being evident in many of her poems .Emily was also well read , choosing writers such as ; Emerson ,Thoreau ,dickens, John Ruskin, and nineteenth - century poets like the browning 's and the Bronte sister .

The poetry of Emerson was introduced to Emily by one of her brother 's friends , Benjamin Newton. Newton was a young law student , who was well versed in contemporary literature .He was one of the first people to recognize the poetic capacities of Emily ,and encouraged her to write poetry .the works of other poets, in particular Emerson, were important for Emily had innovative views and unorthodox belief , but she often doubted her own convictions; thus influences of Emerson and other poets were of great importance .

On returning home from college , Emily  Dickinson learnt much of the domestic chore , helping her mother with cleaning , sewing and entertaining . she sought as much as possible to maintain the ideals of the early American travelers following principles of honesty ,simplicity and high minded morals . Emily was said to be beautiful, with a soft voice and dark eyes , she dressed in a relatively simple way and surviving photos show she kept her hair  in a simple straightened style (somewhat like the  puritan style )

Emily was quick witted and intelligent ; she had a good sense of humor ,but was often ill at ease in other people'[s com0pany .she gave the impression of being somewhat agitated and intense . her friend and literary critic ,Thomas Wentworth Higginson, would later how tense the meeting with her was ." I was never with anyone who drained my nerve power so much " However he did comment that those " little plan woman " was also ingenious , childlike and seemed very thoughtful of others ,"" also ,although she did feel awkward in some social situations ,it  her close friends and sisters she could easily indulge in innocent childlike humour .

Emily herself often thought of herself like a child ; even tomboy and she referred to this in many of her poems . In this frame of mind , she portrayed a degree of vulnerability looking to others for protection this was particularly marked in her relationship wither authoritarian father , whom she was eager to defer to .

For a tie , her father served in the House of Representatives ,and on occasion Emily visited Washington . It was here that she was able to come into contact with the charismatic  preacher ,the Reverend  charles Wadsworth ,From  her letters , it is clear she held him in high esteem, despite their apparent differences in the logical beliefs .the 2 exchanged letters for many years , including response to Emily ' request for spiritual guidance .

Emily Dickinson’s Seclusion

Because of her discomfort and shyness in social situation s, Emily gradually reduced her social contacts, going out less and less into society . By her late twenties ,this has led to an almost complete seclusion ; spending most of her time in the family house , rarely meeting other from outside a close family circle .her sister explains this wasn't a sudden decision , but a gradual process that happened over a period of time .However , despite  the physical seclusion ,Emily still maintained written contact with a  variety of thought provoking people . It is also clear from her poetry that her decision to live life as a recluse did poet close her mind , but in many ways allowed the flow of new avenues of thought and inner experiences .

Despite  her family's strong political tradition , Emily appeared unconcerned with politics . At the start of the American civil war the commented little on the event ,and chose not to help the war effort ,through making bandages  .To be fair, this attitude of distancing from the war was quite common in the north .for example ,her brother Austin choose to pay $ 500 to avoid military service ; however as the war years advanced and Amherst experienced its first casualties of war , inevitably its citizens were drawn further into the conflict .Emily and and her family , were particularly affected when friends of the family were killed in Battle . Death of close friends was a significant feature of Emily’s life ; many close to her were taken away .This inevitably heightened her interest , fascination and perhaps fear of death  which informed so much of her poetry .the civil War years were also the most productive for Emily ; in terms of quantity of poems ,it appears Emily Dickinson was influenced imperceptibly by the atmosphere  of war , even if it appeared somewhat distant to her .

As well as writing over 1700 poems Emily was a prolific letter writer these letters giving her the opportunity for contact with others ,that in other respects she denied herself .Her letters show her love of language and are often not too dissimilar to her style of poetry .she went to great length  to express her personal sentiments of gratitude and love to others .Her letters to her sister in law Sue have often been interpreted as love letters ,leading to speculation over her sexual bias .but it must be remembered this emotional style of writing and communicating was fairly common for the time .they should also be seen in regard to Emily's other letters ,which freely express intense emotional sentiments .

Many of her poems refer to an invisible lover , - and objects of devotion Biographers  have inevitably speculated about who this is .There s strong evidence that towards  the end of her life had some kind of emotional relationship with Judge  Otis Lord ( many years her senior and highly respected within the community ), However ,the poetry of Emily Dickinson was often deliberately  vague ,the  object of her devotion may have been no person in  particular , but some unknown aspect of the divine .

Emily Dickinson died at the age of 55 from Bright's disease, which is caused by kidney degenerations .Her doctor suggested that the accumulation of stress throughout her life  contributed to her premature death .

Despite Emily's seclusion and frail health ,her poetry reveals that she did experience movements of great joy .through nature and life she was able to glimpse into a mystric dimension beyond worldly distractions; although is also clear this did not become a permanent feeling. for every ecstatic joy there seems to be a contrasting doubt and uncertainty. But she was able to offer a concise and direct revelation of thought provoking ideas through a powerful command of language .Even cities of her poetry ,who point inconsistencies in style and form ,cannot deny the inherent power of her poetry and this explains the enduring popularity and success of her poetry .

My life closed twice before its close

It yet remains to see

If  immortality unveil

A third event to me

So huge ,so hopeless to conceive

As these that twice befell ,

Parting is all we know of heaven ,

And all we need of hell ,

After her death, her close sister Vinnie had been instructed to burn her letters. In doing so she came across a box of 1700 of Emily's poems thankfully Vinnie ignored any request to burn old manuscripts. after a couple of years , Vinnie handed them to family friend ,Mabel Todd. .Although Mabel never met Emily ,she had often been to Evergreens ,the Dickinson family home ./she typed up 200 letters becoming increasingly enthusiastic about the beauty and power  of the poems .With the helps and encouragement of poems was published in 1893 .Her poems soon received extraordinary praise form leading magazines and newspapers .the New York times clamed Emily Dickinson would soon be known amongst the immortals of English speaker poets.

One of Dickinson's poet most famous poems ," I heard a Fly buzz " strongly describes the mental distraction posed by irrelevant details at even the most crucial moments even at the moment of death .the poem then become disregarded fly into the figure of death itself , as the fly's wing cuts the speaker off from the light until she cannot "see to see ." but the fly does not grow in power or stature ; its final severing act is perfumed  "With Blue - entertain stumbling Buzz - " this poem is also remarkable for its detailed evocation of a deathbed seen - the dying person's loved ones steeling portion of me/ Assignable " ( a turn of phrase that seems more

Shakespeare are than does Dickinsonan.)