Poets are still musing on pictures of Miss Emily
Thursday July 14, 2005
(with thanks to Anny Ballardini of the NewPoetry list for pointing out the links)
from Common-Place, a Web zine of early American history & culture:
“How I Met and Dated Miss Emily Dickinson: An Adventure on eBay,” by Philip F. Gura
from Eclectica Magazine:
“Why Emily Dickinson Would Not Smile For the Camera,” by David Graham
Can we apprehend the poems by reading the poet’s face? Is it necessary to know about the poet’s life before we can understand the layered meaning of his/her words? Readers of Sappho or Homer might answer “no” -- yet where we have just a little information about a poet’s life, or just one authenticated photograph of a poet’s face, as with Emily Dickinson, those tidbits are the focus of endless fascination. Read Gura’s article for a loving account of his discovery of what may be a second photograph of ED, and Graham’s essay for a speculative perspective on her own “distrust of photography,” likely the reason there are so few images of her face: “In this as in other things, Dickinson anticipates the century in which she never lived.”
Related articles:
Our reference page on Dickinson, with 7 poems
Poetry/Life/Politics, Gary Glazner on a book which combines Margaret Randall’s poetry with her life story in prose and photos
Piñero & the Poet’s Life
from Common-Place, a Web zine of early American history & culture:
“How I Met and Dated Miss Emily Dickinson: An Adventure on eBay,” by Philip F. Gura
from Eclectica Magazine:
“Why Emily Dickinson Would Not Smile For the Camera,” by David Graham
Can we apprehend the poems by reading the poet’s face? Is it necessary to know about the poet’s life before we can understand the layered meaning of his/her words? Readers of Sappho or Homer might answer “no” -- yet where we have just a little information about a poet’s life, or just one authenticated photograph of a poet’s face, as with Emily Dickinson, those tidbits are the focus of endless fascination. Read Gura’s article for a loving account of his discovery of what may be a second photograph of ED, and Graham’s essay for a speculative perspective on her own “distrust of photography,” likely the reason there are so few images of her face: “In this as in other things, Dickinson anticipates the century in which she never lived.”
Related articles:
Our reference page on Dickinson, with 7 poems
Poetry/Life/Politics, Gary Glazner on a book which combines Margaret Randall’s poetry with her life story in prose and photos
Piñero & the Poet’s Life
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