emily dickinson hope is the thing with feathers poem

The hidden sense may be traced throughout every line of the poem. At the end of the poem, the narrator remembers the circumstances when she met the bird: whether it was “in the most chill land” (9) or “on the strangest Sea” (10), it was the same bird which did not ask anything.Īlthough it is possible to interpret the poem as the story of a person who admired a small bird, its courage, and modesty, the meaning of this text is deeper. In other words, it helped many people, but its fate is quite cruel. It is mentioned that the bird “kept so many warm” (8). Further, the events unfold: the bird is pictured in different moments of its life, such as the most brilliant times when the wind carries the beautiful song and the harsh situations when the storm is likely to “abash the little Bird” (7). For this reason, the narrator admires the bird.

At the beginning of the poem, the first two lines introduce the bird, and the narrator describes it as the creature that continues singing “without the words” (3). On the surface, the plot of the poem is very simple: the narrator tells the story of a small bird which she calls the “thing with feathers” (1) and compares with hope.

The ideas of the fervent hope and the humble acceptance of hardships are vividly depicted, and a specific “role model” is given. The poem “254, or “Hope” is the Thing with Feathers” is a magnificent example of the author’s homiletic style (Dickinson par.

Emily dickinson hope is the thing with feathers poem