Thursday, February 23, 2012
Forgiveness without penance
It occurred to me that the subject of the poem "237" is compared to a fallen angel through Dickinson's use of imagery. The first stanza gives the image of the speaker rising to heaven, and later she refers to herself as "the Sparrow of your care." When someone cares for a sparrow, we assume that it has been injured and can no longer fly. The last line of the poem also captured my interest. "I drop my Heart - unshriven." I found out that to shrive means "to impose penance on" or "to hear the confession of." This last line would suggest that the speaker's heart has not been penitent or has not confessed of its sins. The first line of the same stanza reads "and so I con that thing - forgiven." So maybe the speaker is trying to say that she is taking advantage of forgiveness by accepting it, but without any actual repentance for her sins. This is in contrast to poem "1509" which we read on the first day of class. It says that revenge is the only way to sate a starving anger. Forgive me if this post seems lacking in depth. Poetic analysis is a practice with which I have always struggled.
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I agree in a way that the speaker is in some way taking advantage of forgiveness and uses it solely for her own benefit. I know that this poem appeared in Dickinson's Master Letters, a series of letters in which she corresponded with Thomas Wentworth Higginson, a man whom she sought literary criticism and advice. I read part of these letters in a class last year and I found her correspondence with Higginson very odd; and it seemed that many times Dickinson was hopeful that their relationship would lead to her work being published. I think the idea of forgiveness without repentance goes well with Dickinson's stance within her letters. I think Dickinson saw herself as under the care and guidance of Higginson for many years; but after being neglected and underestimated as a writer, I think Dickinson came to realize that she didn't necessarily need him. I thought these ideas may help add to your post and give you something else to think about when considering forgiveness and repentance in poem 237; even though I think you are selling yourself short, because I didn't think your post was lacking in depth.
ReplyDeleteI'm going to have to agree with Chelsea on this one as well; she is not as gratuitous as one might expect. With that being said, in such situation, I can see how one would jump the gun and try and make a great situation for herself out of it. That's just the unfortunate truth that many get an inch and then try and take a foot. As for your statement about your struggling in poetic analysis; I would not worry. Poems, especially Dickinson's, leave so much to the reader to interpret that it is difficult to really get strong evidence to your claims, as opposed to just really "feeling" thoughts and opinions based on your own life experiences. With that being said, I am glad this week was not mine to have a post because it really is difficult to put something up that one can be confident people can relate to. Your post certainly allows people to think though without seeming pushy. Well done.
ReplyDeleteTyler