EXAM: Emily Dickinson - Passages Flashcards
1
Q
TWO BUTTERFLIES
CONTOUR 1 (1/2)
- “upon a Farm” + “Noon”/”Firmament”/”Beam”
rural setting
luminous dict - “went out” “waltzed” “stepped straight through the Firmament/And Rested on a Beam”
pers verbs - “Beam”
comp symb - “And then” + “bore”
adverbial phrase
kinetic verb
enjamb bw L5-6 - ““Upon a shining Sea” + “never yet, in any Port -/Their coming, mentioned – be -”.
metaphor - “-be-“
caesura and dash
A
- P’s intense engage w R conv ev from onset → emph 2B’s etheral power → offer glimpse into Sublime = activ sp’s imag
- endows sml B w abilities beyond phys w tone of sublime aston → demo pwr vate/sp’s imag
- whilst in overt trans sense may rep literal light beam (pathway to transp B to div afterlife), perhaps also stands boundary bw hum knowledge + the sublime → again illus sp’s unique ability to see beyond thresh
- S2 dev into tone eager anticip whereby adverb phrase coupled w kinetic v + enjamb quicken P’s pace
- excitement so intense sp’s imag takes flight like 2B “upon… sea” = know. exclusive bc “never yet, in any Port -/Their coming, mentioned – be -” → sea-faring PoD serves imp metaphor for A) nat’s awe-inspo mutability (B aquire aquatic capab now) B) vastness of sp’s prophetic eye
→ perhaps “Sea” = pun for “see” - elusiveness of know acc by C&D → demarc B’s disloc from phys/mort world
2
Q
TWO BUTTERFLIES
CONTOUR 2
- “the distant Bird” + “Ether Sea” + “Frigate” + “Merchantman” BUT “No notice – was – to me -”
reverse logic - “Ether Sea”
symbolism
A
- fitful dashes → conc reality to sp’s fragmented imag
- AS this undermines of meaning of sea metaphor bc “Ether Sea” now poses symb of metaphys dist bw sp + their muse = acc by full rhyme bw “Sea” + “me”
3
Q
BECAUSE
CONTOUR 1
- common metre + S1 strong iambic rhythm + full rhyme
- “We slowly drove - He knew no haste”
soporific long internal vowel sounds - “put away” “labour and my leisure” → “the School, where Children strove/At Recess - in the Ring”
sentimental tone
rhotic allit + CD
A
- confer predictability = reflect sp’s assurance in Chr “Immortality”
- reinforce expec of easeful trans to rewarding Chr heaven
- eagerness dissolves → sentimental tone
rhotic allit (emph by CD) acc comp meaning of R - trans view R rep nat’s reit cycles vs nihilistic reading proffers poss R = zero to symb D’s eternal nothingness
4
Q
BECAUSE
CONTOUR 2
- L13
metrical break - “Dews drew quivering and chill” + “only Gossamer, my Gown”
icy assonance
metaphor - “We paused before a House” + “swelling”
conn of paused + swelling
A
- latter interp foreground S4 → dram met break (only 6 iambs) perhaps demarc sp’s exact moment D
- afterlife exposed = hostile + barren
→ icy asson evokes sp’s X prep for D’s brutality = metaphorised by clothing - S3 carriage relentless forward propulsion = screeching halt → “paused before a House” = forms horrif euphemism for grave - conn of its ‘swelling’ expose D’s true abjectness
5
Q
BECAUSE
CONTOUR 3
- “Horses’ Heads/Were Towards Eternity-“
return to conceit
anti-closural dash
A
- H/e bleak image undercut by ambig final couplet’s return to conceit - carriage’s “Horses’ Heads/Were Towards Eternity-“ but dest = undisclosed
6
Q
FLY
CONTOUR 1
- “I heard a Fly - when I died -“
capitalisation + symb
trochaic emph - “The Stillness in the Room/Was Like the Stillness in the Air-/Between heaves of Storm -“
simile
conn of ‘heaves’ - “Eyes” “had wrung them dry”
synecdoche - “breaths were gathering firm” + “last Onset” + “when the King/Be witnessed - in the Room -“
sharp asson
plosive ph
A
- 1st line intro critical symb of Fly (cap like G yet mundane + arbitrary in nat) w troch emph on ‘buzz’ → foreshadow outsized power to distract from D’s sublime profundity
- tension bw D’s corp + sublime potential proff by P D rituals epitomised in simile
→ a/t comp conform to P belief D = easeful trans period bw ‘heaves’ of life + afterlife, this ominously undercut by evocation sp’s abject/strained breathing - (like Funeral) faceless M treat sp w careless detach bc synec reduce them → “eyes” that already “wrung them dry” = highlights lim of PCoD feigned interest in D itself
- evince M’s eager antic for “last Onset” when K be witness in the room
→ thruout open Ss ED’s depict of flawless GD scene belies critic of occ’s perform + imperson
7
Q
FLY
CONTOUR 2
- X fly → “stumbling” + three dashes
- “between the light - and me -“
symb - “I could not see to see -“
diacope
repetition
A
- censored any mention of F, epiphanic mood disrupt in S4 when F’s “stumbling” entrance acc by x3 dashes → rep fragmentation of sp’s grasp on reality
- a/t sp’s div election = palpable (“light” = imminent Chr heaven) → awaited satisf thwarted by F’s pos bw the light and me = rev fragility of hum attempts @ deciph D’s enig mystery which can be obscur by sth as min as fly
- L/w, diacope in last line dist bw 2 types sight = sp’s lit sight bc losing touch w phys world + also metaphorical sight bc lose ability to rationalise → control D
8
Q
FUNERAL
CONTOUR 1
- “I felt a Funeral, in my Brain”
imagery
abrupt opening line - common metre
- “Mourners” + “Kept treading - treading -“ vs “it seemed/That Sense was breaking through-“
cap
epizeuxis
plosive ph
sibilance - “like a Drum” + “Kept beating - beating”
simile
epizeuxis
CD
verb conn
A
- Char of ED sp opens w abrupt decl → visceral + tact img confront readers w sev of sp’s mental/phys torment
- upbeat comm metre undercuts grim of → rep sp’s alien from world cont obliv to suff
- sp defenceless vs M (cap to ref power of intrusive thoughts) who ‘kept treading - treading -“ in their mind - epiz + plosive ph jux w soothing sibilance “it..through” → reveal sp’s precarious sanity
- S2 sp exp w/drawal sight typ assoc w D in ED’s opus → simile desc auditory qual of FS “like a Drum” “Kept beating-beating” → epiz partic pointed bc 2nd rep of violent v ‘beating’ (underscored by CD) redef trad comfort element of D rituals = source of sensory assault on sp
9
Q
FUNERAL
CONTOUR 2
- “Boots of Lead” + “creak across” + “Soul” + “Space - began to toll”
metaphor
hyperbole - “being, but an Ear”
synec miniaturisation
3/4. “Plank in Reason, broke” → “Finished knowing - then -“
metaphor
slant rhyme
A
- from here sp’s mental st det rapidly, w/ weight of misery so immense metaph “Boots..Lead” “creak across” very “Soul” + sth abstract as “Space… toll” hyperbol
- sp’s despair acc by synech miniaturisation to “being, but an Ear” → t/f only capable of absorb bleak chimes of plangent D knell
→ ITW ED pres exp of psych suff = prof destructive, iso + excrutiation - Y, FS sp report metaph “Plank…broke” → seem bring mental tort to end bc “Finished… -then-“ → psych disloc emph by CD
- H/e gramm disjunct combo w S’s dep from full rhyme sugg ‘break’ rep moment of rev → free from confines of soc + lit conv = fail to express exp of suff bc lack meaning
10
Q
SLANT
HOW
*1. “certain Slant of light”
paradox
- “Winter Afternoons”
temporal setting
symbolism
*3. “oppresses, like the Heft/Of Cathedral Tunes”
synaesthesia
full rhyme
- “Where the Meanings, are -“
ungramm comma
cap - “heavenly hurt”
paradox
*7. “imperial affliction/Sent us of in the Air -“
agonsing dict
full rhyme
incl pn
*8. “Landscape listens” + “shadows - hold their breath -“
personification
CD
- “breath” + “look of Death”
full rhyme
A
- observing light → sp’s psych discomf trig by pd = nat’s distort sth expec offer clarity
- P’s temp setting esp pointed bc subv trans trad by ID nat w D (of yr + day)
- jux to lucid expec of ‘light’ → sp desc it as know that “oppresses… Tunes” → synaesthetically conflate aural + tact qual = depict all-encomp feeling of desp also evoked by “Boots of Lead” (Funeral)
- unchar of ED full rhyme → mythic/hymnal effect → emph religious subtext of sp’s despair
- indic by ungramm comma in search “where… are -“ → inner conflict bw supposed rel comforts + conf/despair engend by conf w own mort = prof disturbing → sp’s “Meanings” of life (cap to rep compressed meaning - faith in G, self, sanity, nat etc) fundament alt
- (frost) sp laments nonsensicality of G sadistically req his progent to die
- sp’s resentment acc by agonising PoD + full rhyme w Despair emph insep of life + suff
BUT incl pn ‘us’ lends proof to optim reading → pos sp’s lonely suff = ironically univ + thus unity exp - light cont ineluct retreat → leaves personified shadows → winter light fades → CD slow place = attempt delay D
- “breath” of life jux w “look of Death” → scrut role of nat + poss G’s in creating hum consc rich enough to be self-aware of own tragic mort
11
Q
OPPOSITE HOUSE
CONTOUR 1
- “There’s been a Death, in the Opposite House,/As lately as Today”
simple diction - “Neighbours rustle in and out”
three clipped monosyllables
3/4. “flings a Mattress out” + “hurry by” + “if it died - on that -“ + “used to when a boy”
perfunctory conn
neuter pn
lapse to memory
A
- Char ED, sp’s abrupt open decl “There’s…Today” relays crude deets of event w impass econ → ref broader cultural tendency to empty D of pain thru routine
- Lw, sp observes stubb dom of scene where “Neighbours…out” → 3 clipped monosyll acc comm’s busy attempts to console grief thru PGD mourning rituals
- H/e ED destab P taciturn mood when so “flings…out” causing kids “hurry by” + wonder “if … that” like sp “used…Boy” → thru perfunct conn + deperson neuter pn, ED draws attn to D’s persistent goth = AM attempts obfu to X avail
- lapse into memo → evokes nat hum cycle life + D → foreshadow 1 day also be nameless corpse in some OH
12
Q
OPPOSITE HOUSE
CONTOUR 2
- “owned all the Mourners - now -”
CD
conn - “that Dark Parade” + “Of Tassels and Coaches”
Paradoxical epithet
Conn
L20 spatial break
A
- idea re-emph in rel context beginning S3 - ministers officiously “owned…-now-“ → thru CD, sp adopts sardonic tone → mock min’s pride in fleeting power bc also X immune to D
- Prof of awaited F procession “DP” emph by L20 spatial break → demarc corpse’s depart from OH + inaccess to sp → ITW para epithet “DP” encaps P’s central tension bw goth horror of D’s “dark” truth + ostentatious mummery of “Parade” w “Tassels and Coaches”
13
Q
BLAZING
HOW
- “Gold” + “Purple”
colour symbolism - “Blazing in gold”
verb phrase
imagery - “feet of the old Horizon” + “quenching”
personification - “stooping” → “touching” “tinting” “kissing”
affectionate PoD - “Juggler of Day is gone”
conceit - X dashes, octet form +x8 present prog v
A
- (Hope + SQ) central implicit metaphor all to from 1st line w colour symb praising regality sun’s j-like entertainment as travel dawn → dusk
- sp’s joy ev in desc of sunrise “blazing…gold”, conjure img dawn replete w refulg
- A/t ED typic pref to problem E assurance of benev nat, begin sun’s descent early L3 (arrive at pers “feet…Horizon) sugg sp finds certainty of nat’s reits comforting - even “quenching”
- Senti view of D cont thru affectionate PoD around S (having assume guise of “stooping” old woman) “touching” “tinting” “kissing” earth in dying moments
- P’s central conceit explicit final L when sp states “Juggler…gone” → replic climax of J perf = lend conc real to img evoked (sig of ED)
- Above all imp to note X sig ED dashes, compressed octet form +x8 present prog v → alltog confer exhilarating immediacy
14
Q
LIKE RAIN
CONTOUR 1
- “Like Rain it sounded till it curved -“
implicit simile
synaesthesia
elusive referent - “knew ‘twas Wind”
Pentecostal imagery
Pun - “A coming as of Hosts was heard/That was indeed the Rain”
Biblical allusion
A
- (SQ) ED’a vate sp open w implicit sim (“Like…curved) → elusive referent ‘it’ = hesitant to narrow def exp → sp’s percept of nat = overwhelming = ev in syn equiv aural “sounded” vs tactile “curved” → evoke nat’s hyper-mat = power so immediate that X control but only felt
- Reveals nat = deeply infused w div
X only conjure Pentecostal img of G’s 1st breath of life to anim hum (acc rel undertones of hymnal metricality) but also poss pun on v “wind” = acknow sp must manip lang to translate sublime exp into words - Lw sp recount “A coming as of Hosts was heard/That was indeed the Rain” also bib all to descent of HS (like thunderstorm downpour) → conflate nat w divine
15
Q
LIKE RAIN
CONTOUR 2
- “It filled the Wells, it pleased the Pools/It warbled in the Road-” + “let the Floods abroad-” so “it loosened acres” and “lifted seas”.
liquid assonance
Capitalisation
A
- Intensity of tempest esc “It…Road” → while couplet ft internal liquid asson (nat barely contain itself) → becomes fronted when rapturous downpour “let…abroad” + “it…acres” → thru hyperbole storm revealed reach apocalyptic crescendo w cap of “Floods” evaluate it to bib proportions → elicit G’s immanence w/in entropy
