12/27/23, 7:47 PM Emily Dickinson Biography | List of Works, Study Guides & Essays | GradeSaver

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Biography of Emily Dickinson

Emily Dickinson’s life has always fascinated people, even before she was famous for her poetry. She
was born in Amherst, Massachusetts, a small farming village, on December 10, 1830, to Edward and
Emily Norcross Dickinson. Edward Dickinson was a well-respected lawyer and politician, descended
from a prominent Amherst family; his father was a founder of Amherst College, where Edward was
treasurer.
Emily was the middle child, and was very close to her brother, Austin, and sister, Lavinia. Emily spent
almost all of her life in her parents’ home in Amherst, with the exception of the year she spent in boarding school
—she left ostensibly because of illness, although it is more likely that it was homesickness. Emily was encouraged
to get a good education, although Edward Dickinson had conservative views on the place of women, and did not
want her to appear too literary.
When Emily returned from boarding school, she was very active socially, and was considered well-liked and
attractive. In her late twenties, though, she suddenly cut herself all from all society, never leaving her family’s
home, and started ferociously writing poetry. Although there is a long-standing myth that the catalyst for this was
her falling in love with a man who rejected her, it is more likely that it was a combination of several factors.
Austin Dickinson married Emily’s very close friend, Susan Gilbert, but the marriage soon became an unhappy one,
and Emily’s friendship with Susan eventually dissolved because of it. In addition, in late 1855, Emily’s mother fell ill
with an undiagnosed illness, and from then until her death in 1882, she was essentially bedridden, and Emily and
Lavinia had to devote a great deal of time to caring for her. This was especially taxing on Emily, who found all
domestic chores stifling, and who was not very close to her mother. Finally, between 1851 and 1854, as many as
thirty-three young acquaintances of Emily’s died, including her good friend and cousin, Emily Lavinia Norcross.
Emily began to dress only in white, and would see no one but her family, meeting visitors only through screens or
behind doors. She wrote prolifically, writing almost 1800 poems, but her genius was never recognized during her
lifetime. She published only seven poems while alive, all anonymously, and all heavily edited. Only after her death
from kidney disease in 1886 did her sister find her poems. Recognizing their genius, she convinced her brother’s
mistress, Mabel Loomis Todd, to help her publish them. The first book was published in 1890, and met with great
success.

Study Guides on Works by Emily Dickinson

After great pain, a formal As imperceptibly as Grief Emily

feeling comes – Emily Dickinson
“After great pain…” is one of Emily Dickinson’s most
famous and widely read poems, and one that has
inspired a good deal of critical commentary and
controversy. Because of Dickinson's notoriously
private and reclusive nature, the poem’s apparent...
Dickinson
"As imperceptibly as Grief" is a poem by Emily
Dickinson about the end of summer, the subtlety of
the passage of time, and the loss that these changes
create. It was written in 1865 and published in 1891.
The poem deals with many of Dickinson's...

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12/27/23, 7:47 PM Emily Dickinson Biography | List of Works, Study Guides & Essays | GradeSaver
A Bird, came down the Walk
Emily Dickinson
"A Bird, came down the Walk" is a poem by Emily
Dickinson, in which the speaker carefully observes a
crow as it eats, drinks, and then flies away when she
offers a crumb. It was written in 1862 and first
published in 1891 as part of the second...
Hope is the Thing with Feathers I could bring You Jewels—had I
Emily Dickinson a mind to— Emily Dickinson
Originally published in 1891, "'Hope' is the thing with
feathers" is a poem by Emily Dickinson. In her lifetime,
Dickinson was mostly known as something of recluse,
rarely leaving her town or home. Her work was only
published after her death in...
I felt a Funeral, in my Brain
Emily Dickinson
Written during 1861—the first year of what is
considered one of her most creative periods—“I felt a
Funeral, in my Brain…” is both one of Emily
Dickinson’s more well-known poems, and reflective of
the themes of death, pain, and psychic...
I taste a liquor never brewed
Emily Dickinson
"I taste a liquor never brewed" is a poem by Emily
Dickinson written in 1860 and first published in 1861.
It appeared, anonymously and with major alterations,
in the Springfield Republican and was one of the few
poems published in Dickinson's...
A narrow Fellow in the Grass
Emily Dickinson
"A narrow Fellow in the Grass" is a poem by Emily
Dickinson written in 1865 and first published in 1866.
It is one of the few poems that was published,
anonymously, in Dickinson's lifetime by a
contemporary literary magazine. Born in 1830,...
Wild Nights — Wild Nights!
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Emily Dickinson's Collected
Poems Emily Dickinson
Emily Dickinson wrote close to 1800 poems in her
lifetime. Her poems are often extremely short, waste
no words, and subvert the traditional forms of the
day. She is also fond of the dash as a tool to signify a
pause or provide emphasis. Her poems,...
"I could bring You Jewels – had I a mind to" is a short
poem by the American poet Emily Dickinson.
Published posthumously, it was written during the
early 1860s. Like much of Dickinson's work, it is brief
and deceptively simple in form and...
I Started Early — Took My Dog
— Emily Dickinson
"I started Early – Took my Dog" is a poem by Emily
Dickinson written in 1862 and published in 1891, as
part of her second posthumous collection, Poems:
Second Series. Dickinson's poems were rescued from
obscurity, following her death, by her...
A Murmur in the Trees—to
note— Emily Dickinson
Emily Dickinson, the renowned American poet, is
widely celebrated as one of the most important
literary figures of all time. Among her many
masterpieces is "A Murmur in the Trees—to note—," a
poem likely written in 1862, but not published until...
This Is My Letter to the World
Emily Dickinson
"This Is My Letter to the World" is a poem by
American poet Emily Dickinson, dealing with themes
of isolation, nature, and social judgment. It was
written in 1862 and published in 1890. Dickinson's
poetry was not widely known during her lifetime....
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Emily Dickinson
"Wild nights - Wild nights!" is a three-stanza poem by
Emily Dickinson, composed in 1861 and published in
1891 as part of the second posthumous collection of
her writing. Dickinson never titled her poems, so they
are commonly referred to by their...

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