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.

Emily poems on death

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. 

Emily poems about love

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. 

Emily poems about friendship

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.

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