Becoming Emily by Krystyna Poray Goddu

Author:Krystyna Poray Goddu
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Chicago Review Press
Published: 2019-09-15T00:00:00+00:00

8

A SECOND SISTER

Amherst celebrated a milestone on June 9, 1853: the railroad was completed. On that day a passenger train made its first trip from New London, Connecticut, more than 100 miles away, to Amherst. Edward Dickinson was again the hero for bringing the railroad to town. He had not only led the effort but also invested a lot of money in it. As he marched through town “Like some old Roman General, upon a Triumph Day,” wrote Emily, she herself stole off to the woods. Seeing the train roar into Amherst that day may have inspired one of her most famous later poems.

I like to see it lap the Miles -

And lick the Valleys up -

And stop to feed itself at Tanks -

And then - prodigious step

Around a Pile of Mountains -

And supercilious peer

In Shanties - by the sides of Roads -

And then a Quarry pare

To fit it’s sides

And crawl between

Complaining all the while

In horrid - hooting stanza -

Then chase itself down Hill -

And neigh like Boanerges -

Then - prompter than a Star

Stop - docile and omnipotent

At it’s own stable door -

The completion of the railroad was Edward’s first triumph of 1853. The second came at the end of the year, in December, when he went off to Washington, DC, as the elected Whig representative for Massachusetts’s 10th Congressional District. He was eager for his family to visit him in the spring. Vinnie and their mother were excited by the prospect, but Emily had no interest in leaving Amherst for a big noisy city—even for a short time—and Edward did not insist.

As the Dickinson household began to bustle with seamstresses and helpers of all kinds in preparation for the April trip, Emily was happy with her decision to stay home. She enjoyed her carriage rides with Henry Vaughan Emmons and their talks about books and poetry.

One of the poems that meant the most to Emily and Henry was Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s “A Vision of Poets.” More than 1,000 lines long, the poem explores how a poet is formed and the importance of not only love but also cruelty and suffering in creating a poet’s vision. Browning invokes many renowned poets of the past. The result is a rich and inspiring celebration of the poet as visionary. This poem deeply influenced Emily, on the cusp of dedicating her life to this vocation. Browning remained one of Emily’s favorite poets throughout her life; her portrait hung in Emily’s bedroom until the day she died.

By spring, Austin and Sue’s engagement was public news. Townspeople seemed to approve—one neighbor stopped by the Dickinsons’ to comment how happy Emily and Vinnie must be to have such a beautiful sister. Edward responded with joy and pride that Sue would now be part of his family.

During Vinnie and their mother’s trip to Washington, Sue stayed with Emily. Even though Emily was 23 years old, there was no question of her staying alone at home. Protective Edward was also worried about the young women being alone at night, so he asked John Graves to sleep in the house.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.