Journal entry# 2 Emily Dickinson

Siu Faat Jimmy Wong
English 48b
January 11, 2008
Professor Lankford

Quote:

A bird, came down the Walk-/He did not know I saw… And then hopped sidewise to the Wall/ To let a Beetle pass-

Summary:

This poem is actually describing some very usual and normal things. A bird eats a worm and it does not know that it is being watched. Also, it waits for a beetle to pass by. Though the whole poem only depicts the event which happens in Dickinson’s garden, she can still write a very good poem with these kinds of simple material.

Response:

Not similar to other poets who love to travel all over the world to find something which is worthy to be included in their poems, Dickinson chooses to stay in her house or in her garden to write her poems by observing something in her daily life. In this poem, after she observes a bird and some insects, she uses her wonderful description skill to depict the whole event on a paper. “He bit an Angle Worm into halves” can really make me imagine that there is really a bird eating an Angle Worm. Moreover, the bird “drank the Dew” after finished eating the worm. It is just similar to human beings who usually drink something after having a meal. Her observation and description greatly increases the creditability of the poem. Moreover, this poem is quite reading-friendly since she either starts a new line or uses a dash when there is a new motion. For instance, “drank a Dew/From a convenient Grass” and “hopped sidewise to the wall/ to let a Beetle pass” can show this result. Though she cuts the poems into pieces by having new lines or dashes, I do not have any feeling of over-split. Dickinson’s poem is more casual comparing with other poets. Most of the material of Dickinson is about daily lives which can arouse reader's echo easily. She encourages me that in order to be a good poet or a good writer, there is no need to always travel around to get idea. Instead, I can just simply use something happen in my lives to be the writing material. For instance, I may write something related to my family, my lover or my friend. My reader may even feel happier when they are reading something more familiar with them.