Out of the selection of Emily Dickinson poetry for Tuesday’s class, Poem 202 stood out to me. I believe that its resonance is mainly because of how impressed I am with it. Only four lines, it packs quite a punch with how much is effectively used in it and the space created for many readers’ interpretations. My first thought after reading the poem was that its meaning derives from the conflict between science and religion or the observable and tangible versus the intangible. While Dickinson seems to be setting up a conflict between faith and microscopes, she uses poetry techniques that seem to unite the two thoughts. For example, the exclamation marks that end each sentence or the slant rhyme between “see” and “emergency” (which are the words that conclude each sentence). Furthermore, she is connecting the two subjects with their roles as visual aids for things that cannot be seen with the naked eye. Instead, this evidence supports a more light-hearted or playful tone for this poem. I am interested to know what she implies by faith being an “invention”, in which the connotation seems to be ambiguous because of the “Gentlemen who see” (2). Who are these Gentlemen? Overall, I feel that she is admiring those that can see spiritually and believe in a power that is not visible, while wittily acknowledging a practical and more convenient/easier example of sight.
Small but Mighty: Dickinson’s Poem #202
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Katherine, I think that you make a great point here. When I first read Dickinson’s poem #202, like you, I assumed it was contrasting, and highlighting, the tension between science and religion. As you keenly point out, Dickinson certainly adds some nuance using poetic devices. Regarding your question about “invention” and “[g]entlemen who see!,” I do think that those choices support a reading that challenges the authenticity and merit of religion. To me, the word “invention,” implies that religion is a construct that was created with a specific purpose. Additionally, perhaps the italicization of “see” is meant to cast an air of doubt around whether or not people can actually connect to God.
Hi Katherine and Pippi, I really enjoyed your analysis of this poem. It was by far my favorite of the selection we read for class today. To add onto some of the analysis you started, I also noticed that “Faith” is put into quotation marks in her poem. When I first read this, I wondered if she was trying to insinuate that a lot of people’s faith isn’t what it should be (like the idea of people who say they’re religious when their actions actually go against religious morals and beliefs). However, having read it over again, I now think it was used to emphasize the word Faith and make it immediately stand out as a theme, and even as a sort of title, of the poem.
I also found her capitalization pattern in this poem fascinating. I don’t have a good answer as to why she capitalized “Gentlemen,” “Microscopes,” and “Emergency,” but I think it adds an excitement/urgency to the poem, especially given how short and seemingly simple it is. I think the exclamation points add to this effect as well. As you said Katherine, this poem is small but mighty!
Hi Katherine! #202 also stood out to me — I wondered about the existence of a contention between religion and science, but to your point about the scientific diction of “invention” regarding “faith”, I wonder if her take is more nuanced in bridging the divide between the two. I also wonder, though this may be a stretch, if the “Gentlemen” she refers to serves as a critique of patriarchal histories of religion and the assurance and/or impertinence of leading figures in the field of religion in promoting their beliefs.