230 / Types of Writing
SAMPLE LITERARY ANALYSIS of AN AUTHoR
The following sample paper uses three representative poems to discuss the charac-
teristic style of poet Emily Dickinson.
Alone in a Crowded World: Emily Dickinson and Her Poems
Emily Dickinson lived a solitary life, maintaining little communication with people and the out-
side world. In fact, she preferred nature and the Deity over people and things of this earth, so
the extensive travels to which her poems refer took place only in her mind. Three representa-
tive poems indicate how Dickinson related her lonely life in her work.
Her solitary life reflects a personal choice. “This is my letter to the World/That never wrote to
Me,” Dickinson writes while expressing her resentment toward society. The only “person” who
truly understands her, Dickinson says, is Mother Nature. Although Dickinson admits she can-
not see the actual person, she nevertheless remains convinced that Mother Nature is real and
sincerely cares for her children, Dickinson concludes. As a result, the poet sees little need to
communicate with the less faithful outside world.
Perhaps because of her identification with Mother Nature, Dickinson also expresses a fond-
ness for nature and the supernatural. She admits preferring to be alone with the birds and the
trees in her garden to attending a gala event with hundreds of people. As part of her belief
in the supernatural, however, she faces the reality of death and often wonders what follows.
While she admits that she has never spoken with God, she believes she is assured of a place
in Heaven. In “This World Is not Conclusion” she states, “A Species stands beyond—/Invisible,
as Music—/But positive, as Sound.” Throughout the poem, Miss Dickinson talks about the
attempts man has made through the years to explain the metaphysical and how he has failed,
so in this manner she affirms her belief in nature and the supernatural.
Because she maintained a solitary life, however, she used her imagination to explore the out-
side world. In the poem “I Never Saw a Moor,” Dickinson embarks on a mental journey admit-
ting that while she has never seen many places, she knows “how Heather looks/And what
a Billow be,” referring to the moors and the seashores of England. Her solitary life, then, did
not close her mind to the outside world, no matter how sadly it reflected itself to her. An avid
reader, Dickinson no doubt traveled through her books as well as through her obviously active
mind.
Poems such as these give us a clear picture of Emily Dickinson’s beliefs, choices, and lifestyle.
Dickinson, who preferred to see no adults other than her own family, expressed her character-
istic attitudes in her poetry: her reciprocal love of Mother Nature, her corresponding belief in
the supernatural, and her delight in mental voyages. While the people of her era described her
as eccentric, unethical, even rebellious, she has proved to be one of the greatest poets of all
time.