Thursday, March 8, 2012

Poem 613 Commentary

Poem 613
They shut me up in Prose --
As when a little Girl
They put me in the Closet --
Because they liked me "still" --
Still! Could themself have peeped --
And seen my Brain -- go round --
They might as wise have lodged a Bird
For Treason -- in the Pound --
Himself has but to will
And easy as a Star
Abolish his Captivity --
And laugh -- No more have I --


Commentary:

They shut me up in Prose —
The speaker's captors have limited the speaker to only expressing themselves through reading/writing.
Why they have captured them is unclear.
Who is "They"?
Is "They" society?
As when a little Girl
Speaker is recalling of a previous time this happened as a child.
The gender noted here is important, and I think it is closely intertwined with why she might be oppressed.
They put me in the Closet —
As a child she was put there to hide her away.
A closet
Because they liked me "still" —
She is put in the closet to keep her quiet.
Girls were meant to be proper and keep to themselves in the 19th c.

Still! Could themself have peeped —
 "Still!" says that they could have checked on her anyway and that the captors could listen to her.
I'm wondering who speaker is referring to as "themself"
Peeped, like a bird?
And seen my Brain — go round —
If captor could see her brain they would know she has a lot to express.
Round: implying working, spinning, thought provoking.
They might as wise have lodged a Bird
Just as she was locked in a closet, they could have easily done this to a bird.
Birds are symbols for peace, innocence.
Bird could also mean pretty young woman
For Treason — in the Pound —
Treason, as in to betray allegiance?
Pound, a place for unwanted, unclaimed animals?
Himself has but to will

Himself, like God?
Him is capitalized, higher power?
Capitalization to demonstrate patriarchal power?
And easy as a Star

Celestial, divine, Godlike, omnipotent
Abolish his Captivity —

His is not capitalized anymore
And laugh — No more have I —

Captivity has rid her of humor and freedom of self-expression.


Emily Dickinson's writing is really enigmatic to me, especially her generous use of dashes and capitalization. I'm curious what the meaning of her punctuation choices mean. Maybe the dashes and capitalization have something to do with meter and rhythm, or perhaps to emphasize certain words.  Either way, her writing themes strongly resemble most other women's writing in the 19th century, those themes of subordination and lack of control over one's body.

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