30 Emily Dickinson's Poems Worth Reading
Explore 30 of Emily Dickinson’s most captivating poems. Discover her unique style and deep thoughts on life and nature.
Emily Dickinson was a famous American poet who lived in the 1800s. She wrote nearly 1,800 poems, but only a few were published while she was alive.
Dickinson's poems are known for being short, using simple words, and talking about big ideas like life, death, and nature. She often used dashes instead of normal punctuation, which made her writing style unique.
Many people didn't understand her poems at first, but now she is seen as one of the most important American poets.
In Emily Dickinson: A Biography by Richard B. Sewall shows that over 90% of Emily Dickinson's poems were published posthumously, with many editions released in the decades following her death.
This list of 30 Emily Dickinson poems is a great way to explore her work and see why she's still loved today.
Emily Dickinson's creative writing often surprises readers when they first discover her work. Her massive collection of poetry can be really exciting to explore.
"When you find out Emily Dickinson wrote almost 1,800 poems"
"I'm going to need more coffee."
Short Emily Dickinson poems
Emily Dickinson wrote many short poems that are easy to read and understand. These poems often talk about big ideas like life, death, and nature, but in a simple way. Some of her best short poems are just a few lines long, but they can make you think a lot. They're great for kids and adults to enjoy.
1. I'm Nobody! Who are you?
I’m Nobody! Who are you?
Are you – Nobody – too?
Then there’s a pair of us!
Don't tell! they'd advertise – you know!
How dreary – to be – Somebody!
How public – like a Frog –
To tell one’s name – the livelong June –
To an admiring Bog!
2. A day
I’ll tell you how the sun rose, —
A ribbon at a time.
The steeples swam in amethyst,
The news like squirrels ran.
The hills untied their bonnets,
The bobolinks begun.
Then I said softly to myself,
“That must have been the sun!”
But how he set, I know not.
There seemed a purple stile
Which little yellow boys and girls
Were climbing all the while
Till when they reached the other side,
A dominie in gray
Put gently up the evening bars,
And led the flock away.
3. Success is counted sweetest
Success is counted sweetest
By those who ne'er succeed.
To comprehend a nectar
Requires sorest need.
Not one of all the purple Host
Who took the Flag today
Can tell the definition
So clear of victory
As he defeated – dying –
On whose forbidden ear
The distant strains of triumph
Burst agonized and clear!
4. If I can stop one heart from breaking
If I can stop one Heart from breaking,
I shall not live in vain
If I can ease one Life the Aching,
Or cool one Pain,
Or help one fainting Robin
Unto his Nest again,
I shall not live in vain.
5. A bird came down the walk
A Bird, came down the Walk -
He did not know I saw -
He bit an Angle Worm in halves
And ate the fellow, raw,
And then, he drank a Dew
From a convenient Grass -
And then hopped sidewise to the Wall
To let a Beetle pass -
He glanced with rapid eyes,
That hurried all abroad -
They looked like frightened Beads, I thought,
He stirred his Velvet Head. -
Like one in danger, Cautious,
I offered him a Crumb,
And he unrolled his feathers,
And rowed him softer Home -
Than Oars divide the Ocean,
Too silver for a seam,
Or Butterflies, off Banks of Noon,
Leap, plashless as they swim.
Emily Dickinson's poems on death
She often explored what it means to die and what happens after we pass away. In her poems, death is sometimes seen as peaceful, like a gentle sleep.
Other times, it's mysterious or even scary. Dickinson used simple vocabulary to talk about this big topic, making her readers think deeply about life and death.
6. I felt a funeral, in my brain
I felt a Funeral, in my Brain,
And Mourners to and fro
Kept treading - treading - till it seemed
That Sense was breaking through -
And when they all were seated,
A Service, like a Drum -
Kept beating - beating - till I thought
My mind was going numb -
And then I heard them lift a Box
And creak across my Soul
With those same Boots of Lead, again,
Then Space - began to toll,
As all the Heavens were a Bell,
And Being, but an Ear,
And I, and Silence, some strange Race,
Wrecked, solitary, here -
And then a Plank in Reason, broke,
And I dropped down, and down -
And hit a World, at every plunge,
And Finished knowing - then -
7. Because I could not stop for death
Because I could not stop for Death –
He kindly stopped for me –
The Carriage held but just Ourselves –
And Immortality.
We slowly drove – He knew no haste
And I had put away
My labor and my leisure too,
For His Civility –
We passed the School, where Children strove
At Recess – in the Ring –
We passed the Fields of Gazing Grain –
We passed the Setting Sun –
Or rather – He passed Us –
The Dews drew quivering and Chill –
For only Gossamer, my Gown –
My Tippet – only Tulle –
We paused before a House that seemed
A Swelling of the Ground –
The Roof was scarcely visible –
The Cornice – in the Ground –
Since then – 'tis Centuries – and yet
Feels shorter than the Day
I first surmised the Horses' Heads
Were toward Eternity –
8. If I should die
If I should die,
And you should live—
And time should gurgle on—
And morn should beam—
And noon should burn—
As it has usual done—
If Birds should build as early
And Bees as bustling go—
One might depart at option
From enterprise below!
'Tis sweet to know that stocks will stand
When we with Daisies lie—
That Commerce will continue—
And Trades as briskly fly—
It makes the parting tranquil
And keeps the soul serene—
That gentlemen so sprightly
Conduct the pleasing scene!
9. The last night that she lived
The last Night that She lived
It was a Common Night
Except the Dying—this to Us
Made Nature different
We noticed smallest things—
Things overlooked before
By this great light upon our Minds
Italicized—as 'twere.
As We went out and in
Between Her final Room
And Rooms where Those to be alive
Tomorrow were, a Blame
That Others could exist
While She must finish quite
A Jealousy for Her arose
So nearly infinite—
We waited while She passed—
It was a narrow time—
Too jostled were Our Souls to speak
At length the notice came.
She mentioned, and forgot—
Then lightly as a Reed
Bent to the Water, struggled scarce—
Consented, and was dead—
And We—We placed the Hair—
And drew the Head erect—
And then an awful leisure was
Belief to regulate—
10. I died for beauty—but was scarce
I died for Beauty - but was scarce
Adjusted in the Tomb
When One who died for Truth, was lain
In an adjoining Room -
He questioned softly "Why I failed"?
"For Beauty", I replied -
"And I - for Truth - Themself are One -
We Brethren are", He said -
And so, as Kinsmen, met a Night —
We talked between the Rooms -
Until the Moss had reached our lips -
And covered up - Our names -
Poems about love by Emily dickinson
Emily Dickinson wrote many beautiful poems about love. Some of her love poems are happy, while others are sad. She often used nature to talk about feelings.
Dickinson's love poems can be about romantic love, family love, or even love for God. Her words are simple but powerful, making readers feel what she felt.
11. That I did always love
That I did always love
I bring thee Proof
That till I loved
I never lived—Enough—
That I shall love alway—
I argue thee
That love is life—
And life hath Immortality—
This—dost thou doubt—Sweet—
Then have I
Nothing to show
But Calvary—
12. To lose thee – sweeter than to gain
To lose thee, sweeter than to gain
All other hearts I knew.
Tis true the drought is destitute
But, then, I had the dew!
The Caspian has its realms of sand,
Its other realm of sea.
Without this sterile perquisite
No Caspian could be.
13. The heart asks pleasure – first
The Heart asks Pleasure—first—
And then—Excuse from Pain—
And then—those little Anodynes
That deaden suffering—
And then—to go to sleep—
And then—if it should be
The will of its Inquisitor
The privilege to die—
14. As if some little arctic flower
As if some little Arctic flower
Upon the polar hem —
Went wandering down the Latitudes
Until it puzzled came
To continents of summer —
To firmaments of sun —
To strange, bright crowds of flowers —
And birds, of foreign tongue!
I say, As if this little flower
To Eden, wandered in —
What then? Why nothing,
Only, your inference therefrom!
15. If you were coming in the fall
If you were coming in the Fall,
I'd brush the Summer by
With half a smile, and half a spurn,
As Housewives do, a Fly.
If I could see you in a year,
I'd wind the months in balls---
And put them each in separate Drawers,
For fear the numbers fuse---
If only Centuries, delayed,
I'd count them on my Hand,
Subtracting, til my fingers dropped
Into Van Dieman's Land,
If certain, when this life was out---
That yours and mine, should be
I'd toss it yonder, like a Rind,
And take Eternity---
But, now, uncertain of the length
Of this, that is between,
It goads me, like the Goblin Bee---
That will not state--- its sting.
Life poems by Emily dickinson
Emily Dickinson wrote many poems about life. These poems talk about how she saw the world and what it means to be alive. She used simple words to describe big ideas. Her life poems often look at nature, feelings, and the passage of time. They help us think about our own lives in new ways.
16. After great pain, a formal feeling comes
After great pain, a formal feeling comes –
The Nerves sit ceremonious, like Tombs –
The stiff Heart questions ‘was it He, that bore,’
And ‘Yesterday, or Centuries before’?
The Feet, mechanical, go round –
A Wooden way
Of Ground, or Air, or Ought –
Regardless grown,
A Quartz contentment, like a stone –
This is the Hour of Lead –
Remembered, if outlived,
As Freezing persons, recollect the Snow –
First – Chill – then Stupor – then the letting go –
17. Hope is the thing with feathers
“Hope” is the thing with feathers -
That perches in the soul -
And sings the tune without the words -
And never stops - at all -
And sweetest - in the Gale - is heard -
And sore must be the storm -
That could abash the little Bird
That kept so many warm -
I’ve heard it in the chillest land -
And on the strangest Sea -
Yet - never - in Extremity,
It asked a crumb - of me.
18. The soul selects her own society
The Soul selects her own Society —
Then — shuts the Door —
To her divine Majority —
Present no more —
Unmoved — she notes the Chariots — pausing —
At her low Gate —
Unmoved — an Emperor be kneeling
Upon her Mat —
I've known her — from an ample nation —
Choose One —
Then — close the Valves of her attention —
Like Stone —
19. A Bird, came down the Walk
A Bird, came down the Walk -
He did not know I saw -
He bit an Angle Worm in halves
And ate the fellow, raw,
And then, he drank a Dew
From a convenient Grass -
And then hopped sidewise to the Wall
To let a Beetle pass -
He glanced with rapid eyes,
That hurried all abroad -
They looked like frightened Beads, I thought,
He stirred his Velvet Head. -
Like one in danger, Cautious,
I offered him a Crumb,
And he unrolled his feathers,
And rowed him softer Home -
Than Oars divide the Ocean,
Too silver for a seam,
Or Butterflies, off Banks of Noon,
Leap, plashless as they swim.
20. This is my letter to the world
This is my letter to the World
That never wrote to Me—
The simple News that Nature told—
With tender Majesty
Her Message is committed
To Hands I cannot see—
For love of Her—Sweet—countrymen—
Judge tenderly—of Me
What Emily Dickinson said about friendship?
In Emily Dickinson's words, friends were like treasures that made life better. She said friends could bring joy, comfort, and support.
Dickinson believed true friends were rare and precious. She wrote poems about friends that how they could understand each other without words and how they could help during tough times.
21. A narrow fellow in the grass
A narrow Fellow in the Grass
Occasionally rides -
You may have met him? Did you not
His notice instant is -
The Grass divides as with a Comb,
A spotted Shaft is seen,
And then it closes at your Feet
And opens further on -
He likes a Boggy Acre -
A Floor too cool for Corn -
But when a Boy and Barefoot
I more than once at Noon
Have passed I thought a Whip Lash
Unbraiding in the Sun
When stooping to secure it
It wrinkled And was gone -
Several of Nature’s People
I know, and they know me
I feel for them a transport
Of Cordiality
But never met this Fellow
Attended or alone
Without a tighter Breathing
And Zero at the Bone.
22. Faith is a fine invention
“Faith” is a fine invention
For Gentlemen who see!
But Microscopes are prudent
In an Emergency!
23. A Day! Help! Help! Another Day!
A Day! Help! Help! Another Day!
Your prayers, oh Passer by!
From such a common ball as this
Might date a Victory!
From marshallings as simple
The flags of nations swang.
Steady — my soul: What issues
Upon thine arrow hang!
24. A shady friend for torrid days
A shady friend for torrid days
Is easier to find
Than one of higher temperature
For frigid hour of mind.
The vane a little to the east
Scares muslin souls away;
If broadcloth breasts are firmer
Than those of organdy,
Who is to blame? The weaver?
Ah! the bewildering thread!
The tapestries of paradise!
So notelessly are made!
25. To see her is a picture
To see her is a Picture —
To hear her is a Tune —
To know her an Intemperance
As innocent as June —
To know her not — Affliction —
To own her for a Friend
A warmth as near as if the Sun
Were shining in your Hand.
Emily Dickinson's poems about nature
Emily Dickinson loved writing about nature in her poems. She often talked about flowers, birds, and the changing seasons.
Her nature poems are full of beautiful descriptions that make you feel like you're outside. She wrote about things like bees buzzing, trees swaying, and sunsets. These poems show how much she cared about the world around her.
26. Nature – the gentlest mother is
Nature – the Gentlest Mother is,
Impatient of no Child –
The feeblest – or the waywardest –
Her Admonition mild –
In Forest – and the Hill –
By Traveller – be heard –
Restraining Rampant Squirrel –
Or too impetuous Bird –
How fair Her Conversation –
A Summer Afternoon –
Her Household – Her Assembly –
And when the Sun go down –
Her Voice among the Aisles
Incite the timid prayer
Of the minutest Cricket –
The most unworthy Flower –
When all the Children sleep –
She turns as long away
As will suffice to light Her lamps –
Then bending from the Sky –
With infinite Affection –
And infiniter Care –
Her Golden finger on Her lip –
Wills Silence – Everywhere –
27. A light exists in spring
A Light exists in Spring
Not present on the Year
At any other period -
When March is scarcely here
A Color stands abroad
On Solitary Fields
That Science cannot overtake
But Human Nature feels.
It waits upon the Lawn,
It shows the furthest Tree
Upon the furthest Slope you know
It almost speaks to you.
Then as Horizons step
Or Noons report away
Without the Formula of sound
It passes and we stay --
A quality of loss
Affecting our Content
As Trade had suddenly encroached
Upon a Sacrament
28. The sky is low – the clouds are mean
The sky is low, the clouds are mean,
A travelling flake of snow
Across a barn or through a rut
Debates if it will go.
A narrow wind complains all day
How some one treated him;
Nature, like us, is sometimes caught
Without her diadem.
29. The bee is not afraid of me
The Bee is not afraid of me.
I know the Butterfly.
The pretty people in the Woods
Receive me cordially—
The Brooks laugh louder when I come—
The Breezes madder play;
Wherefore mine eye thy silver mists,
Wherefore, Oh Summer's Day?
30. There’s a certain slant of light
There's a certain Slant of light,
Winter Afternoons –
That oppresses, like the Heft
Of Cathedral Tunes –
Heavenly Hurt, it gives us –
We can find no scar,
But internal difference –
Where the Meanings, are –
None may teach it – Any –
'Tis the seal Despair –
An imperial affliction
Sent us of the Air –
When it comes, the Landscape listens –
Shadows – hold their breath –
When it goes, 'tis like the Distance
On the look of Death –
As you read through these poems, you might find yourself wondering what makes Dickinson's work so special. Her unique style and profound insights are often attributed to her unconventional use of punctuation and simple yet powerful language.
"Trying to explain why Emily Dickinson's poetry is so profound"
"It's all in the dashes and simplicity!"
However, Emily Dickinson was a great poet of all time who wrote many poems on different themes. You can also try to make your own poems. Write by yourself or also use a poem creator. This will help you to brainstorm ideas and generate poems according to your desire.
Conclusion
Emily Dickinson's poems are special because they talk about big ideas in simple ways. She wrote about life, death, love, nature, and friendship using easy words that make us think deeply.
Her poems are short but powerful, often using dashes instead of normal punctuation. This list of 30 poems shows why people still love her work today. By reading these poems, you can see how Dickinson looked at the world in a unique way.
Her words can make you feel happy, sad, or curious. Why not pick a poem from this list and read it out loud? You might be surprised by how it makes you feel or what you discover.
FAQs
2. How many poems did Emily Dickinson write?
Emily Dickinson wrote nearly 1,800 poems, although only a few were published during her lifetime. Her poetry gained widespread recognition after her death.
3. Why did Emily Dickinson use dashes in her poems?
Emily Dickinson uses dashes to create pauses, emphasize certain ideas, and control the rhythm of her poetry. This unconventional punctuation adds a distinct rhythm and complexity to her work.
4. Are there common themes in Emily Dickinson’s poems?
Yes, common themes in Dickinson’s poetry include nature, death, love, friendship, and the inner life of the mind. Her work often shows philosophical and existential questions.
7. What makes Emily Dickinson’s poetry unique?
Her poetry is unique due to its distinctive style, including the use of unconventional punctuation, short lines, and slant rhyme. Her ability to convey profound emotions and ideas with simplicity is also notable.
8. How did Emily Dickinson’s poetry influence literature?
Dickinson’s innovative style and themes have influenced modern poetry and literature. Her work has inspired many poets and writers with its introspective and unconventional approach.
