Emily Dickinson

Upon the first reading of Dickinson's poem, I picked up on themes of wandering: "Uncertain step" "newness of the nights" "meet the road" "grope a little" "learn... alters... adjusts" and finally "steps almost straight."



Other phrases in the poem that stood out to me include "We grow accustomed to the dark when the light is put aways." This line immediately involves the reader, included her in the action of the poem. From the beginning, Dickinson has me thinking about myself in reference to the poem. Another favorite phrase of mine was "evenings of the brain." This phrase just makes you think about life in general. It is so beautifully and uniquely worded. I can picture the sun setting in my mind and the twilight of evening spreading throughout the expanses of my brain. It is a powerful combination of words.
 
Finally, my ultimate favorite phrase from the poem is "either the darkness alters, or something in the sight adjusts itself to midnight, and life steps almost straight." This phrase is where I see the most evidence for the theme of wandering.

Also, the last stanza of the poem is where I see most evidence for my opinion that the tone of the poem is uplifting. I think Dickinson is trying to offer strength and encouragement through this poem. It's like an "It gets better" message way before its time. I see the darkness as neither good nor bad, just something new and strange. Although our society commonly associates darkness with bad, it is not always so. Everything in life does not have to be so binary. Especially in this poem, darkness represents a kind of ambiguity.

Let's end with this picture of Emily Dickinson.