THE TIMES AND INFLUENCES OF EMILY DICKENSON

"WITHIN' YOU AND WITHOUT YOU"

BY PETE HOLLY-COPYRIGHT-2008

IT'S INTERESTING TO SEE THE CONVERGENCES OF IDEAS AND HISTORICAL
EVENTS AND THE EFFECTS THEY HAD ON ARTISTS AND WRITERS OF THIER
TIME.FEW PEOPLE ATTACH THE POETRY OF EMILY DICKENSON TO THE CIVIL
WAR YET IT WAS PRECISELY DURING THE YEARS OF THE WAR THAT DICKEN-
SON WROTE THE LARGEST AMOUNT AND THE BEST OF HER POETRY।
TWO OTHER MOVEMENTS IN ART AND LITERATURE ALSO COINCIDED
WITH DICKENSON'S WORK AND SHE WAS WELL AWARE OF BOTH.FIRST WAS
"THE HUDSON SCHOOL OF PAINTING" LEAD BY THOMAS COLE.THE NATURE
SCENES WEE IDEALIZED AND ROMANTIC YET THE IMAGERY WAS SO STRONG
AND BROUGHT THE RUGGEDNESS OF NATURE SO ALIVE THAT THEY WERE
EMOITIONALLY IMPRESSIVE।SOMEHOW ALL THIS WAS CONNECTED TO
EMERSON,THOREAU'S SELF-RELIANCE AND WALT WHITMANS WILD
FREE FORM POETRY.-ALL REFLECTIONS OF MAN'S RELATION TO UNTAMED
NATURE AND SEEKING A WAY TO LIVE WITH IT ON THIER OWN-WITHOUT
SPOILING THE VIEW-SO TO SPEAK।ALL THESE IDEAS AND EVENTS INFLUENCED EMILY DICKENSON AND YET SHE WAS ABLE TO CREATE HER OWN
ART THAT COULD EASILY STAND ON IT'S OWN MERIT-AND ABOVE ALL THESE
WRITERS AND ARTISTS.INDEED;DICKENSON'S PEN NOT ONLY TOOK EVERYTHING IN BUT IT ALSO GAVE EVERYTHING OUT AS WELL.THIS WAS THE SPECIAL POWER OF HER POETRY
AND WHY IT IS STILL AHEAD OF IT'S TIME OVER 150 YEARS LATER!HER MYTH
LIVES ON IN THE GLORY OF HER WORDS.

SOURCES-A HISTORICAL GUIDE TO EMILY DICKENSON-VIVIAN R. POLLACK
THE LIFE OF EMILY DICKINSON-MY WARS ARE LAID AWAY IN BOOK'S
-ALFRED HABEGGAR