READING

Emily Dickinson
Emily Dickinson was a 19th century American poet. She was unknown during her lifetime, but
became very famous after her death.

Emily Elizabeth Dickinson was born on December 10, 1830, in Amherst, Massachusetts. She was
the second of three children. Her father was a prosperous lawyer. Her mother was introverted and
hard-working. Emily was an excellent student. She studied at Amherst Academy (now Amherst
College) for seven years and then attended Mount Holyoke Female Seminary for a year.

Emily Dickinson started writing as a teenager. Until Dickinson was in her mid-20s, her writing mostly
took the form of letters. She was very interested in poetry. A family friend named Benjamin Franklin
Newton sent Dickinson a book of poetry by Ralph Waldo Emerson. She also liked the poetry of
Elizabeth Barrett Browning. Emily Dickinson wrote most of her poems in the 1850s and 1860s. Very
few of them were published during her lifetime.

Emily Dickinson usually stayed at home and didn’t go out very often. She preferred to exchange
letters with her friends. In 1855, she went on a trip to Philadelphia, where she became friends with a
minister named Charles Wadsworth. They wrote a lot of letters to each other. When he died, she
remembered him as her “dearest earthly friend”.

One of Dickinson’s closest friends was a woman named Susan Gilbert. In 1856, Gilbert married
Dickinson's brother, William. The Dickinson family lived in Amherst. Dickinson’s father died in 1876.
Emily and her sister Lavinia took care of their sick mother, who died in 1882. Emily and Lavinia
never married and they lived together until their deaths. In her free time, Emily wrote poems and
studied botany.

Emily Dickinson died in Amherst, Massachusetts, on May 15, 1886, at the age of 55. The first book
of her poetry was published in 1890. A full compilation, The Poems of Emily Dickinson, was
published in 1955. Emily Dickinson became famous. Her poems were translated into Japanese,
Italian, French, German, and many other languages.

1 Read the text and answer the following questions.

1 What was Emily Dickinson’s father’s job?
Her father was a prosperous lawyer.
2 Who sent Emily Dickinson a book of poetry by Ralph Waldo Emerson?
A family friend named Benjamin Franklin Newton sent Dickinson a book of poetry by Ralph Waldo
Emerson.
3 When did Emily Dickinson write most of her poems?
Emily Dickinson wrote most of her poems in the 1850s and 1860s .
4 Where did Emily Dickinson travel in 1855?
In 1855, she went on a trip to Philadelphia .
5 Who was Emily Dickinson’s husband?
Emily Dickinson never married.
6 What did Emily Dickinson do in her free time?
In her free time, Emily wrote poems and studied botany.
7 How old was Emily Dickinson when she died?
She died at the age of 55.

2 Are these sentences true (T) or false (F)?

1 Emily Dickinson was famous during her lifetime. F
2 Emily Dickinson’s mother was extroverted and hard-working. F
3 Emily Dickinson studied at Amherst Academy for one year. F
4 Emily Dickinson started writing when she was in her teens. T
5 Emily Dickinson was interested in the poetry of Elizabeth Barrett Browning. T
6 One of Emily Dickinson’s closest friends married Emily’s brother. T
7 Emily Dickinson had one brother and one sister. F