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Selected Poems of Emily Dickinson
Only a handful of Emily Dickinson's nearly 2000 poems were published in her lifetime, but today she is recognised as one of the most important American poets of the 19th century. With an introduction by Conrad Aiken, this attractive collection, published for The Modern Library, New York by Random House Publishers in 1924, gathers more than 150 of her memorable works. Featuring insights about nature, love, life, time and eternity, these poems are among the best loved in English literature.
Fun Fact: This is the book Sophie was reading in the movie 'Sophie's Choice'.
Fun Fact: This is the book Sophie was reading in the movie 'Sophie's Choice'.
- GenresPoetry
231 pages, Hardcover
Published January 1, 1924
7 people are currently reading
22 people want to read
About the author
Emily Dickinson
1,559 books6,853 followersEmily Dickinson was an American poet who, despite the fact that less than a dozen of her nearly eighteen hundred poems were published during her lifetime, is widely considered one of the most original and influential poets of the 19th century.
Dickinson was born to a successful family with strong community ties, she lived a mostly introverted and reclusive life. After she studied at the Amherst Academy for seven years in her youth, she spent a short time at Mount Holyoke Female Seminary before returning to her family's house in Amherst. Thought of as an eccentric by the locals, she became known for her penchant for white clothing and her reluctance to greet guests or, later in life, even leave her room. Most of her friendships were therefore carried out by correspondence.
Although Dickinson was a prolific private poet, fewer than a dozen of her nearly eighteen hundred poems were published during her lifetime.The work that was published during her lifetime was usually altered significantly by the publishers to fit the conventional poetic rules of the time. Dickinson's poems are unique for the era in which she wrote; they contain short lines, typically lack titles, and often use slant rhyme as well as unconventional capitalization and punctuation.Many of her poems deal with themes of death and immortality, two recurring topics in letters to her friends.
Although most of her acquaintances were probably aware of Dickinson's writing, it was not until after her death in 1886—when Lavinia, Emily's younger sister, discovered her cache of poems—that the breadth of Dickinson's work became apparent. Her first collection of poetry was published in 1890 by personal acquaintances Thomas Wentworth Higginson and Mabel Loomis Todd, both of whom heavily edited the content.
A complete and mostly unaltered collection of her poetry became available for the first time in 1955 when The Poems of Emily Dickinson was published by scholar Thomas H. Johnson. Despite unfavorable reviews and skepticism of her literary prowess during the late 19th and early 20th century, critics now consider Dickinson to be a major American poet.
For more information, please see http://www.answers.com/topic/emily-di...
Dickinson was born to a successful family with strong community ties, she lived a mostly introverted and reclusive life. After she studied at the Amherst Academy for seven years in her youth, she spent a short time at Mount Holyoke Female Seminary before returning to her family's house in Amherst. Thought of as an eccentric by the locals, she became known for her penchant for white clothing and her reluctance to greet guests or, later in life, even leave her room. Most of her friendships were therefore carried out by correspondence.
Although Dickinson was a prolific private poet, fewer than a dozen of her nearly eighteen hundred poems were published during her lifetime.The work that was published during her lifetime was usually altered significantly by the publishers to fit the conventional poetic rules of the time. Dickinson's poems are unique for the era in which she wrote; they contain short lines, typically lack titles, and often use slant rhyme as well as unconventional capitalization and punctuation.Many of her poems deal with themes of death and immortality, two recurring topics in letters to her friends.
Although most of her acquaintances were probably aware of Dickinson's writing, it was not until after her death in 1886—when Lavinia, Emily's younger sister, discovered her cache of poems—that the breadth of Dickinson's work became apparent. Her first collection of poetry was published in 1890 by personal acquaintances Thomas Wentworth Higginson and Mabel Loomis Todd, both of whom heavily edited the content.
A complete and mostly unaltered collection of her poetry became available for the first time in 1955 when The Poems of Emily Dickinson was published by scholar Thomas H. Johnson. Despite unfavorable reviews and skepticism of her literary prowess during the late 19th and early 20th century, critics now consider Dickinson to be a major American poet.
For more information, please see http://www.answers.com/topic/emily-di...
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
October 26, 2022
Picked it up to find out more about her fascination with flowers and morbidity; finishing convinced she was gay. Find her queerer poems classified under the sections 'Love' (see "Wild nights! Wild nights!" 25) and 'Nature' (see "So bashful when I spied her" 70).
December 10, 2023
It's strange to "write a review" when I've been reading Dickinson since I was a child. I always return to her, and different poems speak to me at different times in my life. This edition (which I found in my college library) has a very thorough introduction by Conrad Aiken. I know he was quite the poet in his own right, but I immediately thought, "oh look, it's Joan Aiken's dad!" The introduction is well worth a read, and Dickinson remains the Mother Monster of Weird Little Girls everywhere.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews