Poetry · 1890
Poems by Emily Dickinson, Three Series
Nearly four hundred and fifty poems, unpublished in Dickinson's own lifetime, arranged here as her first editors gathered them into three volumes under the headings "Life," "Nature," "Love," and "Time and Eternity." Her voice is unmistakable from the first page — compressed, unpunctuated by conventional rules, riding on slant rhyme and dashes that read like held breath — and her subjects range from a single bird hopping down a garden walk to the largest questions she ever asked: what death is, whether anything of us survives it, and how to bear the ordinary days between. "Success is counted sweetest," "I'm nobody! Who are you?," "Because I could not stop for Death," and "A Bird came down the Walk" all appear in the numbered sequence her editors gave them, undated and largely untitled, exactly as her family and her first readers encountered them.
Dickinson wrote nearly 1,800 poems in near-total seclusion at her family home in Amherst, Massachusetts, sharing almost none of them for publication; her sister Lavinia discovered the manuscripts, nearly forty hand-sewn booklets, in a bureau drawer after her death in 1886. Thomas Wentworth Higginson and Mabel Loomis Todd prepared them for print, smoothing some of her more unconventional punctuation and supplying the titles she rarely gave her own poems, across three volumes published in 1890, 1891, and 1896.
This Bibliomancer edition presents the complete text of all three series, together with Higginson's preface to the first.
Contents
- Preface
- I — Life: Success
- II
- III — Rouge Et Noir
- IV — Rouge Gagne
- V
- VI
- VII — Almost!
- VIII
- IX
- X — In a Library
- XI
- XII
- XIII — Exclusion
- XIV — The Secret
- XV — The Lonely House
- XVI
- XVII — Dawn
- XVIII — The Book of Martyrs
- XIX — The Mystery of Pain
- XX
- XXI — A Book
- XXII
- XXIII — Unreturning
- XXIV
- XXV
- XXVI
- I — Love: Mine
- II — Bequest
- III
- IV — Suspense
- V — Surrender
- VI
- VII — With a Flower
- VIII — Proof
- IX
- X — Transplanted
- XI — The Outlet
- XII — In Vain
- XIII — Renunciation
- XIV — Love’s Baptism
- XV — Resurrection
- XVI — Apocalypse
- XVII — The Wife
- XVIII — Apotheosis
- I — Nature
- II — May-Flower
- III — Why?
- IV
- V
- VI — A Service of Song
- VII
- VIII — Summer’s Armies
- IX — The Grass
- X
- XI — Summer Shower
- XII — Psalm of the Day
- XIII — The Sea of Sunset
- XIV — Purple Clover
- XV — The Bee
- XVI
- XVII
- XVIII
- XIX
- XX — Two Worlds
- XXI — The Mountain
- XXII — A Day
- XXIII
- XXIV — The Wind
- XXV — Death and Life
- XXVI
- XXVII — Indian Summer
- XXVIII — Autumn
- XXIX — Beclouded
- XXX — The Hemlock
- XXXI
- I — Time and Eternity
- II — Too Late
- III — Astra Castra
- IV
- V
- VI — From the Chrysalis
- VII — Setting Sail
- VIII
- IX
- X
- XI — “Troubled About Many Things.”
- XII — Real
- XIII — The Funeral
- XIV
- XV
- XVI — Refuge
- XVII
- XVIII — Playmates
- XIX
- XX
- XXI — The First Lesson
- XXII
- XXIII
- XXIV
- XXV — Dying
- XXVI
- XXVII — The Chariot
- XXVIII
- XXIX — Resurgam
- XXX
- XXXI
- XXXII
- XXXIII — Along the Potomac
- XXXIV
- XXXV — Emancipation
- XXXVI — Lost
- XXXVII
- XXXVIII
- XXXIX
- XL
- Preface
- I — Life
- II
- III
- IV
- V
- VI — Hope
- VII — The White Heat
- VIII — Triumphant
- IX — The Test
- X — Escape
- XI — Compensation
- XII — The Martyrs
- XIII — A Prayer
- XIV
- XV
- XVI
- XVII — The Railway Train
- XVIII — The Show
- XIX
- XX
- XXI
- XXII — The Return
- XXIII
- XXIV — Too Much
- XXV — Shipwreck
- XXVI
- XXVII — Enough
- XXVIII
- XXIX — My Country’s Wardrobe
- XXX
- XXXI
- XXXII
- XXXIII — The Duel
- XXXIV
- XXXV — The Goal
- XXXVI — Sight
- XXXVII
- XXXVIII — The Preacher
- XXXIX
- XL
- XLI — Deed
- XLII — Time’s Lesson
- XLIII — Remorse
- XLIV — The Shelter
- XLV
- XLVI
- XLVII
- XLVIII
- XLIX
- L — Hunger
- LI
- LII
- LIII — Returning
- LIV — Prayer
- LV
- LVI — Melodies Unheard
- LVII — Called Back
- I — Love: Choice
- II
- III
- IV — The Contract
- V — The Letter
- VI
- VII
- VIII — At Home
- IX — Possession
- X
- XI — The Lovers
- XII
- XIII
- XIV
- XV — The Lost Jewel
- XVI
- I — Nature: Mother Nature
- II — Out of the Morning
- III
- IV — Day’s Parlor
- V — The Sun’s Wooing
- VI — The Robin
- VII — The Butterfly’s Day
- VIII — The Bluebird
- IX — April
- X — The Sleeping Flowers
- XI — My Rose
- XII — The Oriole’s Secret
- XIII — The Oriole
- XIV — In Shadow
- XV — The Humming-Bird
- XVI — Secrets
- XVII
- XVIII — Two Voyagers
- XIX — By the Sea
- XX — Old-Fashioned
- XXI — A Tempest
- XXII — The Sea
- XXIII — In the Garden
- XXIV — The Snake
- XXV — The Mushroom
- XXVI — The Storm
- XXVII — The Spider
- XXVIII
- XXIX
- XXX — The Wind’s Visit
- XXXI
- XXXII — Gossip
- XXXIII — Simplicity
- XXXIV — Storm
- XXXV — The Rat
- XXXVI
- XXXVII — A Thunder-Storm
- XXXVIII — With Flowers
- XXXIX — Sunset
- XL
- XLI
- XLII — Problems
- XLIII — The Juggler of Day
- XLIV — My Cricket
- XLV
- XLVI
- XLVII — Summer’s Obsequies
- XLVIII — Fringed Gentian
- XLIX — November
- L — The Snow
- LI — The Blue Jay
- I — Time and Eternity
- II
- III
- IV — Epitaph
- V
- VI
- VII
- VIII
- IX — The Battle-Field
- X
- XI
- XII
- XIII — Memorials
- XIV
- XV
- XVI
- XVII — Triumph
- XVIII
- XIX
- XX — Following
- XXI
- XXII — The Journey
- XXIII — A Country Burial
- XXIV — Going
- XXV
- XXVI
- XXVII
- XXVIII — At Length
- XXIX — Ghosts
- XXX — Vanished
- XXXI — Precedence
- XXXII — Gone
- XXXIII — Requiem
- XXXIV
- XXXV
- XXXVI — Till the End
- XXXVII — Void
- XXXVIII
- XXXIX — Saved!
- XL
- XLI — The Forgotten Grave
- XLII
- Poems
- Preface
- I — Life: Real Riches
- II — Superiority to Fate
- III — Hope
- IV — Forbidden Fruit
- V — Forbidden Fruit
- VI — A Word
- VII
- VIII — Life’s Trades
- IX
- X
- XI
- XII — A Syllable
- XIII — Parting
- XIV — Aspiration
- XV — The Inevitable
- XVI — A Book
- XVII
- XVIII — A Portrait
- XIX — I Had a Guinea Golden
- XX — Saturday Afternoon
- XXI
- XXII
- XXIII — The Lost Thought
- XXIV — Reticence
- XXV — With Flowers
- XXVI
- XXVII
- XXVIII — Contrast
- XXIX — Friends
- XXX — Fire
- XXXI — A Man
- XXXII — Ventures
- XXXIII — Griefs
- XXXIV
- XXXV — Disenchantment
- XXXVI — Lost Faith
- XXXVII — Lost Joy
- XXXVIII
- XXXIX
- XL — Alpine Glow
- XLI — Remembrance
- XLII
- XLIII — The Brain
- XLIV
- XLV — The Past
- XLVI
- XLVII
- XLVIII — Desire
- XLIX — Philosophy
- L — Power
- LI
- LII
- LIII — Experience
- LIV — Thanksgiving Day
- LV — Childish Griefs
- I — Love: Consecration
- II — Love’s Humility
- III — Love
- IV — Satisfied
- V — With a Flower
- VI — Song
- VII — Loyalty
- VIII
- IX
- X — Forgotten
- XI
- XII — The Master
- XIII
- XIV
- XV
- XVI
- XVII — Who?
- XVIII
- XIX — Dreams
- XX — Numen Lumen
- XXI — Longing
- XXII — Wedded
- I — Nature: Nature’s Changes
- II — The Tulip
- III
- IV — The Waking Year
- V — To March
- VI — March
- VII — Dawn
- VIII
- IX
- X
- XI — A Rose
- XII
- XIII — Cobwebs
- XIV — A Well
- XV
- XVI — The Wind
- XVII
- XVIII — The Woodpecker
- XIX — A Snake
- XX
- XXI — The Moon
- XXII — The Bat
- XXIII — The Balloon
- XXIV — Evening
- XXV — Cocoon
- XXVI — Sunset
- XXVII — Aurora
- XXVIII — The Coming of Night
- XXIX — Aftermath
- I — Time and Eternity
- II
- III
- IV
- V — Ending
- VI
- VII
- VIII
- IX
- X — Immortality
- XI
- XII
- XIII — Death
- XIV — Unwarned
- XV
- XVI
- XVII — Asleep
- XVIII — The Spirit
- XIX — The Monument
- XX
- XXI
- XXII
- XXIII
- XXIV
- XXV
- XXVI
- XXVII — Invisible
- XXVIII
- XXIX — Trying to Forget
- XXX
- XXXI
- XXXII — Waiting
- XXXIII
- XXXIV
- XXXV
- XXXVI — Farewell
- XXXVII
- XXXVIII — Dead
- XXXIX
- XL
- XLI
- XLII
- XLIII — Joy in Death
- XLIV
- XLV
- XLVI — Dying
- XLVII
- XLVIII
- XLIX
- L — The Soul’s Storm
- LI
- LII — Thirst
- LIII
- LIV — Charlotte Brontë’s Grave
- LV
- LVI
- LVII — Sleeping
- LVIII — Retrospect
- LIX — Eternity
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About this edition
The text is free of copyright. This edition was prepared from an authoritative digitisation, processed by Bibliomancer under its own review protocol; every automated correction is recorded in its transformation log. Rights assessed for CA, EU, GB, US.
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About the author
1830–1886 · Victorian
Emily Dickinson (1830–1886) was born in Amherst, Massachusetts, to a prominent local family — her father Edward Dickinson was a lawyer, state legislator, and treasurer of Amherst College — and spent almost the whole of her life in the family home there, withdrawing by her thirties into an increasingly reclusive existence, rarely leaving the house or receiving visitors in her later years. She wrote nearly 1,800 poems, of which fewer than a dozen were published in her lifetime, anonymously and heavily edited to smooth her unconventional dashes, slant rhymes, and compressed, elliptical syntax into more conventional verse; she sent many more in letters to correspondents, among them Thomas Wentworth Higginson, whose literary advice she solicited in 1862 and to whom she signed herself his "scholar" for the rest of her life. After her death from kidney disease at fifty-five, her sister Lavinia discovered nearly forty handwritten booklets of poems locked in a bureau drawer and pressed Higginson and Mabel Loomis Todd to prepare them for publication; Poems (1890), Poems: Second Series (1891), and Poems: Third Series (1896) introduced her to the public for the first time and, despite the editors' smoothing of her style for these early editions, revealed a poet now regarded as one of the most original in the English language.
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