Isolation In Emily Dickinson's Poems

Dickinson also manages to write her poems with a specific metre to bring attention to the themes of her work. It quickly becomes clear that it’s difficult to come across her works that don’t revolve around the theme of isolation. Many of her poems deal with being separated with society or being different from the norm. In poem 260 (288), “I’m Nobody! Who are you?”, it is literally a cry of being an outcast from society’s norms. There’s a fear of being spotted by society but also excitement from coming across another outsider. What contrasts her themes of isolation, however, is the way that her poems are written. Lyrical poetry is not only about the need to express oneself but it also used because of its musical component. It’s as if the poem
This then repeated and created a smooth, flowing manner of reading. It sounded as if there was a consistent beat to her poems. 591 (465), “I heard a Fly buzz – when I died”, is an example of a poem that followed a common metre throughout its entirety. It had a clear rhythm and flow to it. Poem 1793 (1732), “My life closed twice before it’s close”, is another poem that also had a common metre. They are both simple and have a song-like beat to them. This becomes ironic as Dickinson has her poems centred on isolation and death. Singing is an activity that is done in a group and is rarely done alone. Her form contrasts the content, but this was done intentionally to bring attention to the theme of isolation. It is to place an emphasis on separation and the desire to belong. By turning the poem into an activity that is done in unity, it creates a connection between the reader and narrator, and ironically pulls the narrator out of that sense of isolation. Should the form have been different and did not use a common metre, it wouldn’t as effectively emphasized the theme of isolation and ironically create a contrast between the form and