While it's important to be aware that the voice of a narrator in prose or poetry should not be considered representing the author, we also notice that many poems were actually written to reflect the author's life and thoughts. Take the case of Emily Dickinson and try to see whether "Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church" reflects the poet's idea of religiousity and the kind of life she lived. Relate the poem to the other two poems we discussed earlier in class, "I'm Nobody, Who are You?" and "Success is Counted Sweetest." Also, find some references on Emily Dickinson's biography on the internet to help you justify your answer.
P.S. This entry is for my Poetry class, English Education 2005.
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NURUL AZIZAH
052084221
POETRY
BIOGRAPHY OF EMILY DICKINSON
Emily Elizabeth Dickinson was born on December 10, 1830 in the quiet community of Amherst, Massachusetts, the second daughter of Edward and Emily Norcross Dickinson. Emily, Austin (her older brother) and her younger sister Lavinia were nurtured in quiet, reserved family headed by their authoritative father Edward. Throughout Emily’s life, her mother was not “emotionally accessible”, the absence of which might have caused some of Emily’s eccentricity. Being rooted in the puritanical Massachusetts of the 1800’s, the Dickinson children were raised in the Christian tradition, and they were expected to take up their father’s religious beliefs and values without argument. Later in life, Emily would come to challenge these conventional religious viewpoints of her father and church, and the challenges she met with would later contribute to the strength of her poetry.
A crucial issue at that time was the issue of religion, which to Emily was the “all important question”. The descendants of the Dickinson’s can be traced back to the early Puritan settlers, who left Lincolnshire in the late 17th century. Her descendants had left England, so they could practice religious freedom in America. In the nineteenth-century, religion was still the dominant issue of the day. The East coast, in particular, saw a revival of strict Calvinism; was developing partly in response to the more inclusive Unitarianism. Amherst College itself was founded with the intention of training ministers to spread the Christian word, Calvinism. By incrimination, Emily Dickinson would probably have been more at ease with the looser and more inclusive ideology of Unitarianism. However, the “Great Revival” as it was known, pushed the Calvinist view to greatest prominence.
The Calvinist approach to religion believed that men were inherently sinful and most humans doomed to hell. There was only a small number who would be saved, and this could not only be achieved by the adherent proclaiming his faith in Jesus Christ, as the true saviors. There was subtle to encourage people to declare themselves saved. Both, at school and college, there would have been much of this subtle pressure put on Emily to join the “saved”; but this she never did. Her father was not too concerned with the religious views of his children even though, later in his life, he also accepted this belief. Thus, on the crucial issue of the day Emily was relatively isolated. Among other reasons, Emily cold never accepts the doctrine of “original sin”. Despite remaining true to her own convictions, Emily was left with a sense of exclusion from the established religion, and these sentiments inform much of her poetry. There is frequent reference to “being shut of heaven”. Yet despite this rejection on the orthodox religion, there is much in her poetry which reveals a profoundly religious temperament. For Emily religious experience was not a simple intellectual statement of belief; it could be more accurately in the beauty of nature, and the experiences of ecstatic joy. Yet, although her poetry expressed intense inner experiences, this separation fro established religion is a factor in her uncertainties and fluctuations in sentiment, evident in any poems.
The poem basically says that she has no time for God and she would rather stay at home and worship. She chooses to keep Sabbath at home, in a simplistic way with just her family. She is conveying to us that she does not need a large church service to accommodate her keeping the Sabbath, but is content to worship Lord in her home.
The poet views the lessons of life and purpose as being easy to understand and without the need for latently. Heaven isn’t viewed as a reward in this poem, because that would be a self centered reason to be a Christian/ Sabbath keeper. Instead, the poet sees that beauty, pure existence is worship to God. The poet can consider his/ her environment to be heaven. This is especially true because Emily Dickinson referred to herself as a pagan.
Dickinson’s view of religion seems limited at best. She described that she has God as her clergyman, which in effects shows there is not clergy needed for communion with the divine.
Emily concludes that she won’t stop her life to worship when she could be doing it equally well at home. Even if she doesn’t get to heaven, at least she will have had a full life instead of life that’d been frittered away in a Church.
I see that this poem also support the previous two poems because all of the poems are talking about the human’s life, about the human’s habit. It tells us about the human in society and also about the human’s religion.
EKO BAGUS YUSFANTO
052084222/CLASS A
POETRY
Emily Elizabeth Dickinson was born on 10th December, 1830, in the town of Amherst, Massachusetts. Emily Dickinson grew up in a prominent and prosperous household. Along with her younger sister Lavinia and older brother Austin, she experienced a quiet and reserved family life headed by her father Edward Dickinson. Both parents raised Dickinson to be a cultured Christian woman who would one day be responsible for a family of her own. Her father attempted to protect her from reading books that might "joggle" her mind, especially to her religious faith, but Emily individualistic instincts and sensibilities make conflicts that did not allow her to fall into step with the conventional piety, domesticity, and social duty by her father and the orthodox Congregationalism of Amherst.
Emily Dickinson, regarded as one of America’s greatest poets, is also well known for her unusual life of social seclusion. Living a life of simplicity and seclusion, her different lifestyle created a romanticized, and frequently a source of interest and speculation. But ultimately Emily Dickinson is remembered for her unique poetry. Emily could never accept the doctrine of “original sin”. Despite remaining true to her own believed, Emily was left with a sense of exclusion from the religion, and these sentiments effect much of her poetry. There is frequent reference to “being shut out of heaven”. Despite her rejection of the orthodox religion, there is much in her poetry which reveals a profoundly religious temperament.
Emily was also well read, choosing writers such as; Emerson, Thoreau, Dickens, John Ruskin, and nineteenth century poets like the Browning’s and the Bronte sisters. The works of other poets especially to the Emerson works were important for Emily Dickinson in her spiritual ideas beyond the strict Calvinism. Emily had innovative views and unorthodox beliefs, but she often doubted her own believed thus influences of Emerson and other poets were a great importance to Emily point of view.
Because of her discomfort and shyness in social situations, Emily has reduced her social contacts, going out less into society. By her twenties, this has led her to an almost complete seclusion spending most of her time in the family house, rarely meeting others from outside her close family member.
The Civil War years were also the most productive time for Emily in terms of quantity of her poems. It appears Emily Dickinson was influenced by the atmosphere of War, As well as writing over 1,700 poems, Emily was a prolific letter writer these letters giving her the opportunity for contact with others, that in other respects she denied herself. Her letters show her love of language and are often not too dissimilar to her style of poetry. She went to great length to express her personal sentiments of gratitude and love to others.
Emily Dickinson died on May 15, 1886 at the age of 55, from what is described as "Bight’s Disease" which is not truly a disease but a term that was used for a collection of medical symptoms including nephritis (kidney disease) and hypertension. After her death, her close sister Vinnie, had been instructed to burn her letters. But she fines a box of 1.700 of Emily’s poems. After a couple of years, Vinnie handed them to a family friend, Mabel Todd. She typed up 200 letters with the help and encouragement of Terrence Higginson, Emily’s long standing friend, the first edition of poems was published in 1893. Her poems soon received extraordinary praise from magazines and newspapers. The New York Times claimed Emily Dickinson would soon be known amongst the immortals of English speaking poets.
Emily Dickinson’s poem “Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church” is an
expression of her unorthodox view of how a person should live his or her spiritual life. Most people celebrate the Sabbath by going to church. However, Emily Dickinson feels that time is better spent at home and especially with nature, a relevant theme in her poems. She starts her poem with a simple statement that some people keep the Sabbath by going to church, but she stays at home. She makes comparisons between church and her home, that she has birds for a choir and an orchard for a dome (dome meaning a church building). She states that some people dress up for church, but she just wears her wings. Wings are symbolic of what God gives her, and it is relate to her expression of the glory found in her nature. She says that instead of ringing bells for church, her Sexton, which she has mentioned as the bobolink, sings. In her last paragraph, Emily says that God, who of course is a noted Clergyman, preaches to her through life, a sermon that is never long. She says that instead of going to the church, she is going home where she can live her life and get to heaven just as easily. The Sabbath and church are very important aspects of most people’s lives. Emily Dickinson expresses how she feels about truly appreciating the Sabbath and expresses her own kind of relationship with God. She feels that any one can get to heaven by staying at home and in her/his nature.
Khalif Rahma Riesty Fauzi
English Education 2005
Reguler A / 052084013
Religion and religiosity of Emily Dickinson
Being born in a religious family, Emily Dickinson has a different concept of religiosity. While the family and friends officially accept Christianity, she never makes a formal declaration for she is unable to accept orthodox religious faith. The transcendental period of religious survival has also influenced her to go against the church. In his 30s, she stops attending church for she believes that church is not the only way for salvation.
Without going to church, Emily Dickinson chooses her own way to live her own way to do worship. Admiring nature so mush, she makes it the source of her guidance to find God. Therefore, some biographers would label her as druid for her worship of nature. To her, it does not matter where the worship is done but the most important thing is the presence in the worship. Therefore, instead of hypocritically going to church, she chooses to practice her religion, creating her own church at home with a bobolink for the chorister and an orchard for a dame. Moreover, making a bird as her sexton, she feels that God preaches directly to her.
In short, though she rejected the church as entity, she still has religiosity based on her own concept, communing with God and celebrating the Sabbath through the appreciation of nature.
The relationship of the Emily Dickinson’s poems
As one of the great American poet, Emily Dickinson has her own style in writing peoms. She commonly uses humor and sarcasm to express her ideas and tell the reader how she views her life and environment. In “Some keep the Sabbath going to church”, she uses sarcasm to question the sincerity of the people who attend the church and uses humor, confessing her own concept of religiosity. In “I’m nobody! Who are you?” she alos uses humor and sarcasm more than the previous poem to mock the conventional need that to be somebody is very important. While in “Success is counted the sweetest”, she uses sarcasm less than humor to describe her bitterness towards the status of success. Those three poems support each other because all of them express the poet’s bitterness and sorrow with one aspect of her life through humor and sarcasm.
References
A Biography of Emily Dickinson's Life and Writing. (2006, May 31). Retrieved November 19, 2008, from http://www.echeat.com/essay.php?t=28952.
BIography of Emily Dickinson. (n.d.). Retrieved November 19, 2008, from http://www.poetseers.org/early_american_poets/emily_dickinson.
Brown, J. L. (1998, Spring). God and the American Writer. Retrieved November 19, 2008, from http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_hb5270/is_/ai_n28707990.
Dickinson, Wheatly, and Melville: Treatments of God and the American Church. (2000, June 13). Retrieved November 19, 2008, from http://members.tripod.com/Snyder_AMDG/AmerChurch.html.
Morhall, S. (n.d.). The Spirituality of Emily Dickinson. Retrieved November 19, 2008, from http://www.poetseers.org/early_american_poets/emily_dickinson/spirituality_emily_dickinson.
MAHARHANI KRESNHANINGTYAS
ENGLISH EDUCATION 2005 / 052084223
POETRY / A
“SOME KEEP THE SABBATH GOING TO CHURCH” by Emily Dickinson
Emily Elizabeth Dickinson was an American poet born in Amherst, Massachusetts in December 10, 1830. Although her family was successful with strong community ties, she lived a mostly introverted and reclusive life. Thought of as an eccentric by the locals, she became known for her liking for white clothing and her reluctance to greet guests or being alienated to people. Most of her friendships were therefore carried out by correspondence. Dickinson died at the age of 55 on May 15, 1886.
“Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church” is one of Emily Dickinson’s poems which illustrate her spiritual life. That is an expression of her desire to be unorthodox of how she should live her spiritual life and her success in doing so. While most people celebrate the Sabbath by going to church, she considers that is better to spend that time at home and enjoys the nature. It doesn’t mean that she is an unreligious person. She believes in God on her own perception. While most people dishonestly go to service, she actually practices her religion without going to church. Dickinson makes comparison between church and her home stating that she has birds for choir and an orchard for a dome. She also states that some people dress up for church, but she just wears her wings. Wings are symbolic of what God gives her, and they relate to her expression of the
glory found in nature.
In her last paragraph, Dickinson says that God who is a noted Clergyman preaches to her through life, a sermon that is never long. She says that instead interrupting her life to go to church, she is going home where she can live her life and get to heaven just as easily. The Sabbath and church are very important aspects of most people’s lives. Emily Dickinson expresses how she feels about truly appreciating the Sabbath, and establishes her own kind of relationship with God. She feels that one can get to heaven just as easily by staying at home and in nature, God’s creation.
Well, I think there is a relationship between “Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church” and the two poems before, “I’m nobody! Who are you?” And “Success is Counted Sweetest”. From those three poems, we can find the use of ironic in her poems. One can examine each poem show how Dickinson uses ironic to stress an idea or conclusion about her life and the environment in the each poem. In
”Success is Counted Sweetest”, it is bitterness expressed toward the status or notion of success that is most felt by the reader as Dickinson reflects on the nature of success. It is how it can be best appreciated and understood by those who have not achieved it. Next, in “I’m nobody! Who are you?” Dickinson seems to be addressing her spinster, hermit-like existence, and her preference for it. In addition, in the poem "Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church", she questions the sincerity of those who attend church on Sunday on a customary basis. Through the use of comparing the formalities of church with her own celebration of the Sabbath through the appreciation of nature, Dickinson casually suggests that those in attendance at church may not be as sincere in their worship as she is.
NIMAS AYU YUNIKA
A CLASS
052084213
POETRY
Emily Elizabeth Dickinson in viewing religious and religiosity
Emily Elizabeth Dickinson was born in a well known family for educational and political activity. Her father was an Orthodox Calvinist. However, Emily did not want to publish of her confess faith in Christ. She prefer to withdraw herself into a secluded life because she had toubled with her young age at ‘death’. She was so afraid because her close friends mostly died young. It made her traumatized. Therefore, she lost her friends. Then, she chosen to reclusive her life and keep to stay at her room. She composed poems there.
Here a poem entitled ‘Some Keep The Sabbath Going To Church’. The first line ‘Some keep the Sabbath going to church’. She tought that some might go to church to see God, meanwhile herself thought that it was possible to see God around us by enjoying (communicating) with the nature at her surrounding. Line three ‘with a Bobolink for a Choister’. Bobolink here means American song bird. I guess it must have beautiful voice because Emily compared it with choir in the church. She tried to replace the choir with Bobolink as songs for God. She also stated that an orchard was her dome (shelter) in line four ‘And an orchard, for for a dome’. She compared the church building and orchard. The church was made by human, meanwhile orchard was made by God. Therefore, it was more beautiful and irreplaceable in her mind. Line five and six ‘Some keep the Sabbath in surplice- I just wear my wings’. Perhaps she tought that God did not see us from our apperance only. She believed it. If I can say it seemed like ‘Do not judge the book from its cover’. God did not like exaggeration. He needs our sincerity in worship. Line nine to ten ‘God preaches, a noted clergyman- and the sermon is never long’. Here she tought that the sermon given by the clergyman was not enough to give advices or references for human in passing their life. Emily prefered learnt to nature. Everything happened in life was so useful for references in passing her life. In line eleven to twelve ‘So instead of getting to heaven, at last- I’m going, all along’. Due to her daily life always communicate with God (I’m going, all along) she lived along with God. Therefore, she felt that she was already in heaven. Here she might think about endless life because heaven is a peaceful place for people who diligent or sincery in worship to God. Heaven is a peaceful place with endless joyness. God promises to take his people in heaven as a reward of their worship along their life.
This poem tells us about Emily’s feeling in God. Her love of nature and God were reflected in her poems. I think the third poem also support the theme of the previous two poems. Emily used natural approach to communicate with God. It means she made her poems which are represented by nature. She thankful to God with making worship all along day to be one in nature. Her three poems used nature as symbols.
1.‘I’M NOBODY! WHO ARE YOU?’ like a frog, to an admiring bog
2.‘SUCCESS IS COUNTED SWEETEST’ Nectar
3.‘SOME KEEP THE SABBATH GOING TO CHURCH’ Orchard, Bobolink
She stated her love of nature and expressed her joyness in it through her connection to nature. She was so close to God that she sure God would listen to her prayers. From my describing above it is clear that Emily’s life was so close to God. She already felt alive in heaven. Therefore, she never feels alone because she was already live peacefully in heaven as her tought.
In my opinion the three poems have no relationship at all. Each of them has different theme. They were written in different conditions (circumstances). However, emily always use the same symbols (nature).
The End
English education
A Class
Dinar Ika Pratiwi
052084218
Emily Elizabeth Dickinson
Emily Elizabeth Dickinson was born on December 10, 1830 in Amherst, Massachusetts. The place was a sleepy village, in the lush Connecticut Valley, and that place was dominated by the Church and the college. Her father is Edward and her mother is Emily Norcross Dickinson. Her father was a religious and political man. She was taught by their parents, and it could give great effect how she became a woman. Dickinson was reared in Trinitarian Congregationalism, but she never joined the Church. Although, she was growth in a Christian family, but she felt that her father forced her to choose Christianity.
Dickinson graduated from Amherst Academy in 1987. And the longest time, she was ever to spend away from her home. She joined the Mount Holyoke Female Seminary at South Hadley. She was sick, so that she didn’t return. She never married and after she was 30 years old, she was seldom seen by anyone outside of her immediate family.
After that, she wrote a poem about her relationship with God and Nature, for example “Some keep the Sabbath”. This poem told about comparing the institution of Church to nature. She has compared between Bobolinks (small songbird) with a song leader in the Church. It was showed in (line 3). And in line 5-6, it showed that servant attended for worship to take place. She said that the finest was not important thing to her God, God required the servant to go to the Church, although they did not use the beautiful or complicate clothing. She also thought about the meaning of a heaven. She though that a heaven was a reward at the end of the churchgoer’s life. By communing worship nature, she hoped that she could receive the same religious sermons. This poem, also told about commandment command on remember Sabbath and keep it holly.( exodus 20: 8-11). Finally, her belief that she find’s God holly worship nature. From that poem, we could she how Dickinson sees religious. She was a religious person and churchgoer. She though that her God was everything. She didn’t require other people to make relationship in her life, and she made a big decision in her life (she never married) and I saw that this poem didn’t support the theme of the previous two poems. Because, the poems described about dramatic irony. And irony meant that what you say and you feel is different. But, all of those poems have similarity. Dickinson always uses nature to interpret their poem.
Hilyatul Aulia Fitriani
A Class
052084012
English Education ‘05
Emily Elizabeth Dickinson
Emily lived in Amherst, Massachusetts. She was the daughter of Edward and Emily Norcross Dickinson. Her verses were short but inventive, and her themes universal, love, death and her relationship with god and nature. She wrote the poem and the title of her poem was ‘some keep the Sabbath going to church’. That poem told about comparison between church and nature. She thought that she could receive the same religion by communing to nature. In this poem, Dickinson compared between a small song bird with a song leader in the church. It showed in the first line. She said that god did not require the finest. God preferred his servant to attend in the church. In that poem, she also said their understanding about heaven. She said that heaven was a reward of the churchgoer’s who diligent to go to church. She loved her god, and thought that she did not anyone in her life.
Her poem (‘some keep the Sabbath going to church’) did not support the two previous poem (‘I’m nobody! Who are you?’ and ‘success is counted sweetest’) but all of those poems have similarity. Dickinson used nature to describe her poems.
Emily Dickinson was born on December 10, 1830 into one of the prominent families of Amherst, Massachusetts. Her father is Edward Dickinson and her mother is Emily Norcross Dickinson. Emily Dickinson was born in a conventional orthodox Christian family. Her father forced his conventional religion to her. But that condition didn't make her to be a conventional Christianity. She had different point of view and perception in understanding the religiosity and the human relation with God.
It can be shown in Emily Dickinson’s poem titled “Some keep the Sabbath going to church”. In her poem she reflected her thought that the people don’t have to spend the Sabbath by going to church. Emily herself would rather stay at home. She thought that to build the relationship with God, people should not go to church in every Sabbath, but it can be done by getting closer to the nature and God’s creature (it is written in the first stanza). In the second stanza of the poem, Emily told us that most people wear beautiful dress to go to church, but Emily preferred to wear her wings (symbol of what God has given). In the last stanza she also thought that to get to heaven, people should not listen to the sermons. In conclusion, Emily Dickinson tried to show her thought that in building a good relationship with God, we should not only do some religious rituals such as, listen to the sermons etc., but it can be done by staying at home and getting closer with the nature, God’s creature and all things that God has given to us.
The poem titled ‘Some keep the Sabbath going to church’ supports the other two poems titled ‘I’m nobody! Who are you?’ and ‘Success is counted sweetest’. Although those two poems don’t talk abut the religiosity, there is a similarity among those three poems. Emily Dickinson talked about the irony of the real life. She tried to show that what most people do and think is not totally true. Those three poems also used nature and God’s creature as symbols.
FEBRIAN ANTYASWURI
ENGLISH EDUCATION REG A/ 052084021
Emily Dickinson was born on December 10, 1830 into one of the prominent families of Amherst, Massachusetts. Her father is Edward Dickinson and her mother is Emily Norcross Dickinson. Emily Dickinson was born in a conventional orthodox Christian family. Her father forced his conventional religion to her. But that condition didn't make her to be a conventional Christianity. She had different point of view and perception in understanding the religiosity and the human relation with God.
It can be shown in Emily Dickinson’s poem titled “Some keep the Sabbath going to church”. In her poem she reflected her thought that the people don’t have to spend the Sabbath by going to church. Emily herself would rather stay at home. She thought that to build the relationship with God, people should not go to church in every Sabbath, but it can be done by getting closer to the nature and God’s creature (it is written in the first stanza). In the second stanza of the poem, Emily told us that most people wear beautiful dress to go to church, but Emily preferred to wear her wings (symbol of what God has given). In the last stanza she also thought that to get to heaven, people should not listen to the sermons. In conclusion, Emily Dickinson tried to show her thought that in building a good relationship with God, we should not only do some religious rituals such as, listen to the sermons etc., but it can be done by staying at home and getting closer with the nature, God’s creature and all things that God has given to us.
The poem titled ‘Some keep the Sabbath going to church’ supports the other two poems titled ‘I’m nobody! Who are you?’ and ‘Success is counted sweetest’. Although those two poems don’t talk abut the religiosity, there is a similarity among those three poems. Emily Dickinson talked about the irony of the real life. She tried to show that what most people do and think is not totally true. Those three poems also used nature and God’s creature as symbols.
Fitrana Harintama
052084214
POETRY
The roots of Emily Dickinson’s belief lie in Connecticut Valley Congregationalism, a religious community that is based on Calvinism and the New England Puritan theology. Connecticut Valley Congregationalism only knows two sacraments, that of baptism and the Holy Communion (or the Lord’s Supper), of which Dickinson only received the first, having been baptized as a child. Consequently, these should be the only ones playing a role in her poetry. When reading Dickinson’s poetry it is important to keep that fact in mind. Scholars dealing extensively with Dickinson claim that due to her environmental limitations, she could not have incorporated much from other kinds of beliefs into her poetry. Eberwein states that “the only religious tradition she knew well enough to speak its language was that of Connecticut Valley Congregationalism”1. Klein even claims “critics who have imposed Catholic ideology [onto Dickinson’s poems] have missed the mark and have created a context that would have been foreign to Dickinson herself”2. Eberwein and Klein are probably on the right path with their argumentation.
From the hotbed of Puritanism, the birthplace of Transcendentalism, and a family of great renown comes one of the most fascinating female poets of our times. Emily Dickinson was born on December 10, 1830 in Amherst, Massachusetts. As the granddaughter of one of the founders of Amherst College, and the daughter of a prominent politician, Dickinson had the benefit of a proper upbringing and an excellent education.
As a young woman, Dickinson had lovely auburn hair; pale, delicate skin, solid white clothing, and a demure nature. Some critics think that her poetry shows a rebellion against her strong religious background, or a refusal to participate in the Transcendental Movement. However, it is my opinion that her self-imposed seclusion more than anything else enabled Dickinson to focus on her own craft and kept her from being influenced by any contemporary authors.
Dickinson was influenced quite deeply by her close friendships with Samuel Bowles and J.G. Holland, and by her deep attachment to Charles Wadsworth and Thomas Wentworth Higginson. Dickinson considered the Reverend Charles Wadsworth her dearest, earthly friend, mentor and romantic ideal. Thomas Wentworth Higginson was a prominent literary man to whom Dickinson turned for advice on publishing her poetry. Some have contended that the emotional coldness and inaccessibility of Emily's mother caused the lack of female friends in Dickinson's life; but whatever the reason, her male friends were definitely the strongest influence in her life.
NAMA: FAUSIYAH
NO.REG: 052084202
POETRY
Emily Dickinson, regarded as one of America’s greatest poets, is also well known for her unusual life of self imposed social seclusion. Living a life of simplicity and seclusion, she yet wrote poetry of great power; questioning the nature of immortality and death, with at times an almost mantric quality. Her different lifestyle created an aura; often romanticised, and frequently a source of interest and speculation. But ultimately Emily Dickinson is remembered for her unique poetry. Within short, compact phrases she expressed far-reaching ideas; amidst paradox and uncertainty her poetry has an undeniable capacity to move and provoke.
A crucial issue at the time was the issue of religion, which to Emily was the “all important question” The descendents of the Dickinson’s can be traced back to the early Puritan settlers, who left Lincolnshire in the late 17th Century. Her descendents had left England, so they could practise religious freedom in America. In the nineteenth- century, religion was still the dominant issue of the day. The East coast, in particular, saw a revival of strict Calvinism; developing partly in response to the more inclusive Unitarianism. Amherst College itself was founded with the intention of training ministers to spread the Christian word. Calvinism. By inclinination, Emily Dickinson would probably have been more at ease with the looser and more inclusive ideology of Unitarianism. However, the “Great Revival” as it was known, pushed the Calvinist view to greatest prominence.
Emily could never accept the doctrine of “original sin”. Despite remaining true to her own convictions, Emily was left with a sense of exclusion from the established religion, and these sentiments inform much of her poetry. There is frequent reference to “being shut out of heaven”. Yet despite this rejection of the orthodox religion, there is much in her poetry which reveals a profoundly religious temperament. For Emily religious experience was not a simple intellectual statement of belief; it could be more accurately reflected in the beauty of nature, and the experiences of ecstatic joy. Yet, although her poetry expressed intense inner experiences, this separation from established religion is a factor in her uncertainties and fluctuations in sentiment, evident in many poems.
i think there are some relationship among her poems. she wrote the poetries of great power, seclusion, frail health and her poetry reveals that she did experience moments of great joy.
PUTRI ISTIQOMAH
052084005
POETRY ASSIGNMENT
Emily Dickinson is one of greatest American poets in her era. She was born in a prosperous family in Massachusetts. She is recognized as a bright student when she was at school. When she was seventeen years old she entered Mount Holyoke Female Seminary that probably her first religiosity strong enlightenment. She was there for less than a year. She was out of there because of her homesickness and poor health. After her father death on 1874, she started to stay at home and alienated herself from society. But still, she kept managing relationship with her relatives by correspondence. She started to be a very different person. One of the examples is she kept staying at home while other people went to church on sabbath. "Some Keep The Sabbath Going to Church" represents the different taste of religiosity that Dickinson owns. It's not because she is not a religious person, but she had her own willingness in worshiping her God. She still worshiped her God in her own way, which she thought is better than listened to the preacher in the church. She's not afraid being different as she represented in her other poems "I'm Nobody! Who Are You?" and "Success Is Counted Sweet". She found the deeper meaning of life by alienating herself from society and wrote some poems to express her thought of paradox, sarcasm, and irony she found in the society and herself.
IIN ESTI HAPSARI
052084002
class A.reg
me_myarea@yahoo.com
Emily Dickinson is well known for her unusual life of making herself being always from others in a private place. This was because of her uncomfortable feeling and shyness in the social environment. For Emily religious experience it was not a simple intellectual statement of believes, but it could be more accurately reflected in the beauty of nature and the experience of joy-felling the great point of view with others. She didn’t want to follow the most accepted believe / faith in that moment that was the clavinets believe. Even though she had been pressured in both of her school and college to join the “saved”, she never did it. That’s why; she was considered isolated in that moment. Unlikely others, she could never accept the doctrine of “original sin”
Emily’s poetry was often described with unclean expression. Just like the previous two poems, the object of her deep strong love might have been no person in particular. But it was some unknown aspect that discover by guessing.
NUR PRIBI ISSAFARIN
052084203
POETRY
When we are discussing about Dickinson’s poetry, it reflects her loneliness and the speakers of her poems generally live in a state of want, but her poems are also marked by the intimate recollection of inspirational moments which are decidedly life-giving and suggest the possibility of happiness. Her work was heavily influenced by the Metaphysical poets of seventeenth-century England, as well as her reading of the Book of Revelation and her upbringing in a Puritan New England town which encouraged a Calvinist, orthodox, and conservative approach to Christianity.
In Some Keep The Sabbath Going To The Church, this poem basically says that she has no time for God and she would rather stay at home and worship. Dickinson suggested that while some may go to church to be with God, it is possible to be with God simply by enjoying nature. Habit is the enemy of love and true understanding. When people start to do something just because they have been doing it for years and others have been doing it for centuries before them, they lose the meaning and the true spirit that may lie in there. The first time you lick an ice cream it is more delicious that when you tongue gets used to it.
There is a delicate satire and profound mysticism in this poetry. People start going to church and listen to the preacher to reach God then when they simply do it as a habit God has to be a preacher to draw the people's attention. Love defies mere habits and let us sometimes think why we do something instead of being careful only about how we do it. Some keep the Sabbath going to Church, I see that "God preaches, a noted clergy man" means that God is the preacher. Therefore, she has the best clergy man there is. Who better to preach then God? God's sermon is never long suggests that all that is truly important can be said in a short time. The poet views the lessons of life and purpose as being easy to understand and without the need for legend.
Emily, in this poem, is once again displaying her desire to be unorthodox and her success in doing so. While many people choose to celebrate the Sabbath in a church, she sees this as a waste of time and not truly appreciating the Sabbath at all. The Sabbath began as a Pagan holiday celebrating the turn of the seasons, regardless of the Christian connotation it now has. So, in staying true to the original essence of the Sabbath, Emily enjoys nature and experiences all it has to offer. Contrary to this, of course, is staying cooped up inside a stuffy building, listening to someone talk about things you’ll hear a million times over before you die. Moreover, instead of listening to someone worship God for her, she will do it directly and have her own relationship, eliminating the clerical middleman. Emily, finally, concludes that she won’t stop her life to worship when she could be doing it equally well at home. Even if she doesn’t get to Heaven, she proclaims, at least she will have had a full life instead of life that’d been frittered away in a Church.
However, Dickinson's view of religion seems limited at best. She describes that she has God as her clergyman, which in effect shows there is not clergy needed for communion with the divine. This is a very limited view of Christianity and religion. Many denominations clearly accept and even encourage individual correspondence with the divine. The "middleman" is not a necessity in many Christian religions and merely acts as a guide or a counsel in communication, not the source of it.
Related to previous two poems, this poem has similarity with those. being successful depends on his or herself. everyone has own way to do his or her life included the personal relationship with God. Emily has shown to us how she sacrificed her life for God until she passed away.
references
Baym, Nina. Gen ed. The Norton Anthology of American Literature. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2003.
Johnson, Thomas H., ed. The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson. Boston: Back Bay Books, Little, Brown and Co., [1997], c1960. This is a collection of her poems recommended by Norton’s Anthology of American Literature.
http://www.adventistreview.org/2003-1516/story4.html
http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/155
NUR PRIBI ISSAFARIN
052084203
POETRY
When we are discussing about Dickinson’s poetry, it reflects her loneliness and the speakers of her poems generally live in a state of want, but her poems are also marked by the intimate recollection of inspirational moments which are decidedly life-giving and suggest the possibility of happiness. Her work was heavily influenced by the Metaphysical poets of seventeenth-century England, as well as her reading of the Book of Revelation and her upbringing in a Puritan New England town which encouraged a Calvinist, orthodox, and conservative approach to Christianity.
In Some Keep The Sabbath Going To The Church, this poem basically says that she has no time for God and she would rather stay at home and worship. Dickinson suggested that while some may go to church to be with God, it is possible to be with God simply by enjoying nature. Habit is the enemy of love and true understanding. When people start to do something just because they have been doing it for years and others have been doing it for centuries before them, they lose the meaning and the true spirit that may lie in there. The first time you lick an ice cream it is more delicious that when you tongue gets used to it.
There is a delicate satire and profound mysticism in this poetry. People start going to church and listen to the preacher to reach God then when they simply do it as a habit God has to be a preacher to draw the people's attention. Love defies mere habits and let us sometimes think why we do something instead of being careful only about how we do it. Some keep the Sabbath going to Church, I see that "God preaches, a noted clergy man" means that God is the preacher. Therefore, she has the best clergy man there is. Who better to preach then God? God's sermon is never long suggests that all that is truly important can be said in a short time. The poet views the lessons of life and purpose as being easy to understand and without the need for legend.
Emily, in this poem, is once again displaying her desire to be unorthodox and her success in doing so. While many people choose to celebrate the Sabbath in a church, she sees this as a waste of time and not truly appreciating the Sabbath at all. The Sabbath began as a Pagan holiday celebrating the turn of the seasons, regardless of the Christian connotation it now has. So, in staying true to the original essence of the Sabbath, Emily enjoys nature and experiences all it has to offer. Contrary to this, of course, is staying cooped up inside a stuffy building, listening to someone talk about things you’ll hear a million times over before you die. Moreover, instead of listening to someone worship God for her, she will do it directly and have her own relationship, eliminating the clerical middleman. Emily, finally, concludes that she won’t stop her life to worship when she could be doing it equally well at home. Even if she doesn’t get to Heaven, she proclaims, at least she will have had a full life instead of life that’d been frittered away in a Church.
However, Dickinson's view of religion seems limited at best. She describes that she has God as her clergyman, which in effect shows there is not clergy needed for communion with the divine. This is a very limited view of Christianity and religion. Many denominations clearly accept and even encourage individual correspondence with the divine. The "middleman" is not a necessity in many Christian religions and merely acts as a guide or a counsel in communication, not the source of it.
Related to previous two poems, this poem has similarity with those. being successful depends on his or herself. everyone has own way to do his or her life included the personal relationship with God. Emily has shown to us how she sacrificed her life for God until she passed away.
references
Baym, Nina. Gen ed. The Norton Anthology of American Literature. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2003.
Johnson, Thomas H., ed. The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson. Boston: Back Bay Books, Little, Brown and Co., [1997], c1960. This is a collection of her poems recommended by Norton’s Anthology of American Literature.
http://www.adventistreview.org/2003-1516/story4.html
http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/155
NUR PRIBI ISSAFARIN
052084203
POETRY
When we are discussing about Dickinson’s poetry, it reflects her loneliness and the speakers of her poems generally live in a state of want, but her poems are also marked by the intimate recollection of inspirational moments which are decidedly life-giving and suggest the possibility of happiness. Her work was heavily influenced by the Metaphysical poets of seventeenth-century England, as well as her reading of the Book of Revelation and her upbringing in a Puritan New England town which encouraged a Calvinist, orthodox, and conservative approach to Christianity.
In Some Keep The Sabbath Going To The Church, this poem basically says that she has no time for God and she would rather stay at home and worship. Dickinson suggested that while some may go to church to be with God, it is possible to be with God simply by enjoying nature. Habit is the enemy of love and true understanding. When people start to do something just because they have been doing it for years and others have been doing it for centuries before them, they lose the meaning and the true spirit that may lie in there. The first time you lick an ice cream it is more delicious that when you tongue gets used to it.
There is a delicate satire and profound mysticism in this poetry. People start going to church and listen to the preacher to reach God then when they simply do it as a habit God has to be a preacher to draw the people's attention. Love defies mere habits and let us sometimes think why we do something instead of being careful only about how we do it. Some keep the Sabbath going to Church, I see that "God preaches, a noted clergy man" means that God is the preacher. Therefore, she has the best clergy man there is. Who better to preach then God? God's sermon is never long suggests that all that is truly important can be said in a short time. The poet views the lessons of life and purpose as being easy to understand and without the need for legend.
Emily, in this poem, is once again displaying her desire to be unorthodox and her success in doing so. While many people choose to celebrate the Sabbath in a church, she sees this as a waste of time and not truly appreciating the Sabbath at all. The Sabbath began as a Pagan holiday celebrating the turn of the seasons, regardless of the Christian connotation it now has. So, in staying true to the original essence of the Sabbath, Emily enjoys nature and experiences all it has to offer. Contrary to this, of course, is staying cooped up inside a stuffy building, listening to someone talk about things you’ll hear a million times over before you die. Moreover, instead of listening to someone worship God for her, she will do it directly and have her own relationship, eliminating the clerical middleman. Emily, finally, concludes that she won’t stop her life to worship when she could be doing it equally well at home. Even if she doesn’t get to Heaven, she proclaims, at least she will have had a full life instead of life that’d been frittered away in a Church.
However, Dickinson's view of religion seems limited at best. She describes that she has God as her clergyman, which in effect shows there is not clergy needed for communion with the divine. This is a very limited view of Christianity and religion. Many denominations clearly accept and even encourage individual correspondence with the divine. The "middleman" is not a necessity in many Christian religions and merely acts as a guide or a counsel in communication, not the source of it.
Related to previous two poems, this poem has similarity with those. being successful depends on his or herself. everyone has own way to do his or her life included the personal relationship with God. Emily has shown to us how she sacrificed her life for God until she passed away.
references
Baym, Nina. Gen ed. The Norton Anthology of American Literature. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2003.
Johnson, Thomas H., ed. The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson. Boston: Back Bay Books, Little, Brown and Co., [1997], c1960. This is a collection of her poems recommended by Norton’s Anthology of American Literature.
http://www.adventistreview.org/2003-1516/story4.html
http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/155
RAHMAWATI
052084017
English Education Reg 05
Emily Dickinson’s religiosity reflected in her poem, “Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church”.
Emily Elizabeth Dickinson was born on 10th December, 1830 in Amherst, Massachusetts. Being rooted in the puritanical Massachusetts of the 1800’s, Emily Dickinson was raised in the Christian tradition. She was expected to take up her father’s religious belief, i.e. Orthodox Calvanist. However, in her later life, Emily Dickinson has her own faith. The influence of Transcendentalism in Emily Dickinson’s life is what was transformed her traditional religion. Transcendentalism allowed Emily Dickinson to emerge from her puritan heritage.
In this poem, Emily Dickinson declares that she has her own way in celebrating the Sabbath. Instead of going to the church, like the other Christians do, she tends to do the worship by staying at home, admiring nature created by God. For her, the most important thing in celebrating the Sabbath is the worship itself, not the act of going to the church. Therefore, she creates her own church at home with the nature as the components of her own ‘church’, a Bobolink for a chorister and an orchard for a dome. She starts asking question why the Christians keep the Sabbath going to church, to be ‘saved’ in heaven when they died? She chooses to get the heaven when she is still alive, going all along, by enjoying the nature created by God.
The relationship between this poem and the previous two poems.
In these three poems, Emily Dickinson uses metaphor to deliver the idea of the poem. She tries to compare some different things. In ‘Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church’, Emily compares the church with the nature. A chorister is compared with a bobolink and a dome is compared with an orchard. In ‘I’m nobody! Who are you?’, Emily makes a comparison of that being somebody is like being a frog, how public is that. In ‘Success is Counted Sweetest’, she compares success with nectar and the purple host (army). It’s done to explain that success can’t be defined by the one who always win (success). Those three poems basically reflect Emily’s own life. She has different point of view in seeing something in her life. Her eccentricity and her controversial thinking is described clearly in those three poems. From those poems we can see the unusual life of Emily Dickinson. She tends to be alone, secluded from her social life.
TIFA PURNAMA SARI/052084216
Emily Dickinson was one of the greatest American poet. She wrote great poetry although she lived in simplicity and social seclusion. She wrote unique poetry. Within short, compact phrases she expressed far-reaching ideas.
In the nineteenth- century, religion was still the dominant issue of the day, there is strick Calvanism. The Calvinist approach to religion believed that actually people in this world have alot of sins and most humans were doomed to hell. Emily’s father was not too concerned with the religious views of his children. Because of Emily was relatively isolated, Emily could never accept the doctrine of “original sin”.
Because of her convictions, she tries to express it through poem. In Some keep the Sabbath going to Church, I see that "God preaches, a noted clergy man" means that God is the preacher. Therefore, she has the best clergy man. The Sabbath and church are very important aspects of most people’s lives.
Emily Dickinson expresses how she feels about truly appreciating the Sabbath, and establishes her own kind of relationship with God. She feels that one can get to heaven just as easily by staying at home and in nature, God’s creation.
On th other hand, In the poem, "Success is Counted Sweetest"; Dickinson’s emphasis is less on humor and more on expressing irony. Here it is bitterness expressed towards the status or notion of success that is most felt by the reader as Dickinson reflects on the nature of success and how it can be best appreciated and understood by those who have not achieved it.
While the previous poem expresses the poet’s bitterness and sorrow with one aspect of her life, "I am Nobody" she effectively uses humor to soften a critique of elite members of her society.
In the biography of Emily Dickinson, we can see that actually she lives in the religious environment. When she was at school she didn’t like to join to church or religion activity, because she could never accept the doctrine of “Original sin” despite remaining true to her own convictions. Emily’s father was also not too concerned with the religious views of his daughter.
For emily religious experince was not a simple imtellectial statement of belifs, it cold be more accurately reflected in the beauty of nature and the experince of estatic joy. Emily was left with a sense of exclusion from the established religion, and this sentiments inform much of her poetry, the way emily see the religion and the religiosity in her life actually affected her poetry,like in the “some keep the sabbath going to church” in this poetry we can see how emily's prespective of the religion, of the good and of the church.
If we read both emily's poetry and emily's biography we can see that actually her poem is the representative of her idea, the representative of her mind, and the representative about how emily see the world in her own perspective. In the other two poems “I'm nobody! Who are you?” and “success us counted sweetest” we can learn how emily's point of view about her life and the people around her. And based on my opinion that the theme of “some keep the sabbath going to church” support the other two poems. all of them tell about how life is for emily.
HAFIDZA NAS'UL AMRINA
Eng Edu 05/ 052084007
In the biography of Emily Dickinson, we can see that actually she lives in the religious environment. When she was at school she didn’t like to join to church or religion activity, because she could never accept the doctrine of “Original sin” despite remaining true to her own convictions. Emily’s father was also not too concerned with the religious views of his daughter.
For emily religious experince was not a simple imtellectial statement of belifs, it cold be more accurately reflected in the beauty of nature and the experince of estatic joy. Emily was left with a sense of exclusion from the established religion, and this sentiments inform much of her poetry, the way emily see the religion and the religiosity in her life actually affected her poetry,like in the “some keep the sabbath going to church” in this poetry we can see how emily's prespective of the religion, of the good and of the church.
If we read both emily's poetry and emily's biography we can see that actually her poem is the representative of her idea, the representative of her mind, and the representative about how emily see the world in her own perspective. In the other two poems “I'm nobody! Who are you?” and “success us counted sweetest” we can learn how emily's point of view about her life and the people around her. And based on my opinion that the theme of “some keep the sabbath going to church” support the other two poems. all of them tell about how life is for emily.
ASMARA NENGKE (052084016)
English Education 2005 (Poetry Class A)
KEEP THE SABBATH GOING TO CHURCH
Emily Elizabeth Dickinson was born on December 10, 1830 in Amherst, Massachusetts. She is the daughter of Edward and Emily Norcross Dickinson. Her father, Edward Dickinson, was a prominent lawyer in Amherst and a well respected trustee of Amherst College. Emily’s father was a religious and political man who forced his views of religion on his children. His conventional religious viewpoints and values became a challenge for Emily. Emily grew in a Christian family but felt pressured by her father to choose Christianity and her education was strongly oriented towards religion. Emily Dickinson was educated at Amherst Academy and, for only a single year, at Mount Holyoke Female Seminar.
Emily Dickinson was considered to be a high-spirited and energetic young woman. As a young child, Emily proved to be a bright and conscientious student. She showed a sharp intelligence, and was able to create many original writings. But she withdraws from society in 1850. After her withdrawal, virtually all of her contact with friends and family existed through her letters and poems. Emily Dickinson is one of America’s greatest poets and also well known for her unusual life of self imposed social seclusion. She is living a life of simplicity and seclusion. Emily could never accept the doctrine of original sin. Despite remaining true to her convictions, Emily was left with a sense of exclusion from the established religion, and these sentiments inform much of her poetry. One of her poem about religion is “Keep the Sabbath Going to Church”.
Keeping the Sabbath by Going to Church may be nice for some people, but not for Emily Dickinson does. In her opinion, going to church is not the only way to keep the Sabbath. Everyone can keep it just as well at home. In this poem, she was comparing the institution of church to nature. Emily thinks that she can receive the same religious sermons by communing with nature as those who attend church day after day. She starts her poem with a simple, blunt, and also to-the-point statement: "Some keep the Sabbath by going to church, I keep it staying at home," She does not trying to discourage people from going to church if that is what they choose. When Emily prays on the Sabbath, she looks out toward her orchard instead of upward to a dome. For Emily, the natural world is better cathedral and church than a church itself. The Sabbath is not a time to take oneself too seriously and go to church to pray, because they can go to church as often as they want. In her poem Emily tells that she does not need to dress herself up in fancy clothes because she is already "wearing her wings" instead. She lets herself soar far above the cares of this world, for today is The Sabbath. Emily Dickinson seems quite happy with the way she has chosen to keep the Sabbath. It is the right way for her. She suggested can reach the heaven before she dies, because natural world is the real heaven for her. She signs off her poem with the conclusion: "So instead of getting to heaven at last, I'm going all along."
Emily suggested that while people go to church to be with God or while The Sabbath, it is possible to be with God simply by enjoying nature. Emily has compared a small songbird, the Bobolink with a song leader in the church. She stated that an orchard was her sanctuary, instead of attending a church building built by people. Emily met with her God in the natural world that he has provided. Emily stated that while others may dress in their finest attire or surplice she wears her wings. Perhaps she was saying that God doesn’t require the finest, most elaborate clothing, merely someone’s servant in order for worship to take place. With sarcasm, Emily also suggested that God, a noted Clergyman, preaches her sermon and the clergyman’s sermon is too long and make bored. Emily seemed to be saying that she preferred the beautiful religious experience that God provided everyday in the world rather than the ‘long sermons’ in church.
This poem supports the previous two poems. This poem shows the withdrawal of Emily Dickinson, like previous two poems. Previous two poems tell about Emily’s relationship with her society, but the third is told about her relationship with God and also with society. Emily spent almost her life only in her house, but she knows the situation out of her house. She has her own perspective about life and relationship with others. As I know, Emily creates her own world in her house by write so many poems which never published. In her three poems given, Emily shows that her life is far from society. She never tells about her loneliness, she only shows that her life is far from society and sometimes she hates with her society. It can be seen in “I’M NOBODY! WHO ARE YOU?” In that poem, Emily tells that she was fine to be nobody. And in the third poem, she also give suggestion about relation with God is not always have to go to church and listen to clergyman’s sermon, because all thing in this world are church and heaven for Emily. Her seclusion make Emily wrote some sarcasm poems like those three poems. In those three poems, Emily uses metaphoric simile to show her feeling. She uses word “frog” to metaphor public situation, “flag” to metaphor victory, “orchard” to make simile of church.
Yeni Susi Erlinda
052084204
Poetry
Emily Dickinson was born in Amherst, in a successful family with strong community. She lived in a introverted life. Emily Dickinson finished her study at the Amherst academy for seven years in her youth.
Dickinson was a private writer poem; her poems are unique for the era in which she wrote. Many of her poems deal with themes of death and immortality. It meant that her poems talked about death and religion.
Many of Dickinson’s poems were talked about death and religion. It was caused by her troubled from a young age, especially the death of those who were close to her. Emily got trauma from this, and she wrote “it seemed to me I should die too if I could not be permitted to watch over her or oven look at her face”. Emily became melancholic when her parents sent her in Boston to recover.
In 1845, she wrote poems that talked about religion. Her pointed of view of religion was different from another people. She never went to a church, because she thought that she would get the get the greatest pleasure to commune alone with the Great God and to feel that the God would listen to His prayer. Dickinson never made a formal declaration with people who really believed in religion. She also never attended some activities that have relation with religion.
In 1852, she wrote a poem opening “Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church.” It meant that her poem talked about some faiths spent their Sabbath in the Church, but different from Dickinson who spent her Sabbath by herself staying at home.
In 1886, Dickinson was death. Livina, Emily’s younger sister discovered her poems that were saved in Emily’s hidden store would be apparent. Her first was published in 1890 by some people who really known her poems well. They were Thomas Wentworth Hinginson and Mabel Loomis Todd. Both of them were edited the content too.
About her two poems, “Iam Nobody! Who Are You” and “Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church” were her poems which have the same meaning. It meant that both of her poems have a relation in situation when she made her poems. The meaning of situation here was a condition when she felt alone in her life.
When she wrote, “Iam Nobody! Who Are You,” she thought about her life that always alone and never wanted to had a communication with other community. It was also happen in her poem, “Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church.” It was talked about her religion life that very different from another communities who always done their Sabbath in a Church. She chose stay at home to spent her Sabbath than went to a Church because in her pointed of view, pray to the God not needed to wore good dresses or went to church.
Here, I see that these poems also support the themes of the previews two poems. Because her two poems talked about her life and her religion that were very different from another people. But Emily Dickinson always believed in her pointed of view.
SITI MAHMUDAH
052084019
ENGLISH EDUCATION 2005
Emily Dickinson and Her Poems
Emily Dickinson is regarded as one of the greatest poets in America. She was born on 10th December, 1980, in the town of Amherst, Massachusetts. As she lived in the nineteenth century, religion was the crucial issue of the day. She was not at the same opinion as others. Most of the people tried to regard them selves to be the saved by coming to the church, but Emily didn’t. Many people thought that to believe in God, they had to depend their live to the church, but she didn’t. According to her, believed in God was not so simple one. It could be reflected in the beauty of nature and some other experiences of ecstatic joy. Because of her belief and her point of view to the religion, it had influenced her poems.
One of her poems which had been influenced by her contrary belief with others was shown in her poem entitled “some keep the Sabbath going to church”. It that poem she shown that she didn’t intend to do what other did. That’s going to church in the Sabbath (Saturday and Sunday). She thought that to believe in God, she didn’t need to go to church. It’s clearly written in her poem.
Some keep the Sabbath going to church
I keep it staying at home
Some keep the Sabbath in surplice
I just wear my wings
From those quotations of her poem, it’s clear that she didn’t want to go to church and did the sequences of the event which were usually done in the church.
Her absence to the church was not only because of her belief but also her seclusion. Because of her discomfort and shyness in social contacts, she’s going out less in to society. In her late twenties, this had led her to an almost complete seclusion. She just spent most of her time in the family house, rarely meeting others from outside a close family circle. However, despite the physical seclusion she still maintained written contact with a variety of thought provoking people. It is also clear from her decision to live life as recluse didn’t close her mind. But in many ways, it allowed the flow of new avenues of thought and inner experiences. That’s why he wasn’t interested in meeting and contacting with others even going to the church. Despite, he secluded her self.
Her poem entitled “some keep the Sabbath going to church” is actually also support the previous poem, those are “I’m no body? Who are you?” and “success is counted sweetest”. Those are covered by the same theme. That is about being different with other and not the same. That theme appears because of seclusion and her different belief with others. And most of her poems are the realization of her seclusion. Instead of her seclusion, writing poems was another joy for her.
Aulia Kusuma Wardhani
052084208
Poetry / A
The Poem of Emily Dickinson with the title “Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church” illustrates the Emily's religious life. Based on the poem I know that there is different thinking about the concept of religiosity itself. The people at that time including her family always go to the Church, especially if there is celebration but she just stays at home and celebrating with her own way. She goes on with her concept that going to the Church is not the only way to feel the existence of God. She is comfortable with her spiritual life by communicating with the nature. It does not mean that she is an irreligious women but she just wants to express what she feels about God, of course by prodding the God's creature. The concept that comes from the deepest of her heart makes her believes that it is the best way for her to express her loves to God. There are some factors that influence Emily's concept about religiosity. The first is by coming from herself which is difficult to explain, because it depends on that person itself. The second is the condition of her family. Actually, the family has advised her in order to go to Church but she refuses. Knowing Emily's decision, the family does nothing to pressure her, that is why she decides stay at home and does not go to the Church. Then The last factors is the condition of the Church. At that time there is event where the indulgences are sold freely to people otherwise that should be done. Based on this condition the perception of hers about the Church itself becoming negative. So Based on the explanation above, I can say that there is the difference concept between Emily and other people about the way of worship. She chooses to enjoy the beautiful environment and nature as her way in believing the existence of God. By believing in God and always does worship with her own way, Emily fells that she has already became a religious person.
After reading the three poems of Emily, “I’m nobody! Who are you?”, “Success is Counted the Sweetest” and “Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church” I think there is relationship between those poems. I see there are similar in the word chosen and the fell of the poems. It means that she likes to use the symbols and background of the nature in her each poems, and also the fell of the poems them self are about the bitterness.
MAHARHANI KRESNHANINGTYAS
ENGLISH EDUCATION 2005 / 052084223
POETRY / A
“SOME KEEP THE SABBATH GOING TO CHURCH” by Emily Dickinson
Emily Elizabeth Dickinson was an American poet born in Amherst, Massachusetts in December 10, 1830. Although her family was successful with strong community ties, she lived a mostly introverted and reclusive life. Thought of as an eccentric by the locals, she became known for her liking for white clothing and her reluctance to greet guests or being alienated to people. Most of her friendships were therefore carried out by correspondence. Dickinson died at the age of 55 on May 15, 1886.
“Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church” is one of Emily Dickinson’s poems which illustrate her spiritual life. That is an expression of her desire to be unorthodox of how she should live her spiritual life and her success in doing so. While most people celebrate the Sabbath by going to church, she considers that is better to spend that time at home and enjoys the nature. It doesn’t mean that she is an unreligious person. She believes in God on her own perception. While most people dishonestly go to service, she actually practices her religion without going to church. Dickinson makes comparison between church and her home stating that she has birds for choir and an orchard for a dome. She also states that some people dress up for church, but she just wears her wings. Wings are symbolic of what God gives her, and they relate to her expression of the
glory found in nature.
In her last paragraph, Dickinson says that God who is a noted Clergyman preaches to her through life, a sermon that is never long. She says that instead interrupting her life to go to church, she is going home where she can live her life and get to heaven just as easily. The Sabbath and church are very important aspects of most people’s lives. Emily Dickinson expresses how she feels about truly appreciating the Sabbath, and establishes her own kind of relationship with God. She feels that one can get to heaven just as easily by staying at home and in nature, God’s creation.
Well, I think there is a relationship between “Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church” and the two poems before, “I’m nobody! Who are you?” And “Success is Counted Sweetest”. From those three poems, we can find the use of ironic in her poems. One can examine each poem show how Dickinson uses ironic to stress an idea or conclusion about her life and the environment in the each poem. In
”Success is Counted Sweetest”, it is bitterness expressed toward the status or notion of success that is most felt by the reader as Dickinson reflects on the nature of success. It is how it can be best appreciated and understood by those who have not achieved it. Next, in “I’m nobody! Who are you?” Dickinson seems to be addressing her spinster, hermit-like existence, and her preference for it. In addition, in the poem "Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church", she questions the sincerity of those who attend church on Sunday on a customary basis. Through the use of comparing the formalities of church with her own celebration of the Sabbath through the appreciation of nature, Dickinson casually suggests that those in attendance at church may not be as sincere in their worship as she is.
MUHAMMAD MUALLIF
052084226
Hi..friends, it is an interesting poem to discuss each other.Through this blog we can share our idea about everything, especially Emily Dickinson's life.So, i invite you to read my opinion and also give a command.Now, what we are going to talk about is Emily Dickinson's, who was the most original 19th Century American Poets. She was noted for her unconventional broken rhyming meter and use of dashes and random capitalisation as well as her creative use of methaphor and overall innovative style.The Emily's life see that she decided to rebel against become christians and reject the church.Even she rejected the church as entity, she never did reject or accept God.She had individual concept of God.It started when the people of New England began to search for new meaning of life.They often doubted of that.I guess that, Emily Dickinson was influenced by her previous life in which was scarred and expressed her deep sorrow of her family's death.Even she didn't accept or reject God, she beliefed of death."Death is just the next logical step to life and compares to carriage ride or many other common placehappenings", Dickinson said.I conclude that the most important in Emily's life were love,religion, individuality and nature.
In my opinion, previous two poems are connected to individuality ( i'm no body! Who are you! ) and nature ( succes is counted sweetest ).She compared the nature (methaphor) with the humanity, as i know, humanity is a part of nature it must be understood. So that, this poem has different theme of previous two poems.
Sekar Arum Purwadhani
052084215
Poetry / A
Emily Elizabeth Dickinson was born on December 10, 1830 in Amherst, Massachusetts. She is the daughter of Edward and Emily Norcross Dickinson. Emily’s father was a religious and political man who forced his views on his children. His conventional religious viewpoints and values became a challenge for Emily and later strengthened the convictions and ideas of her poetry. Dickinson was raised in a Christian family but felt pressured by her father to choose Christianity. In this poem, she was comparing the institution of church to nature. Dickinson suggested that she can receive the same religious sermons by communing with nature as those who attend church day after day.
Emily Dickinson thought that to be a good Christian, they don’t have to go to church wearing the best clothes they ever had. She saw that giving respectable to nature which is God created, is also means that they honor their God. Perhaps she was saying that God doesn’t require the finest, most elaborate clothing, merely the presence of his servant in order for worship to take place. Instead of attending a fancy church building built by man, Dickinson met with God in the natural world that he has provided. In the first line of her poem, “Some keep the Sabbath going to Church”, Dickinson suggested that while some may go to church to be with God, it is possible to be with God simply by enjoying nature. Dickinson stated that while others may dress in their finest clothes or surplice (Line 5-6), she just wears her wings.
In the last two lines of the poem, Dickinson has summed up her feelings on Heaven as a reward for faithful churchgoers. In line 11, Dickinson seemed to suggest that Heaven was a reward at the end of the churchgoer’s life, if the faithful churchgoer attended church diligently. However, because of her daily walks with God, Dickinson was going all along. Dickinson felt she was already in heaven and there was no way that “in the end” she would not continue on to the celestial Heaven above (Line 12). She compared the institution of church to nature.
The other 2 poems of Emily Dickinson, “I’m nobody! Who are you?” and; “Success is counted sweetest”, are also express her though about the character's of human which is introvert and sensing type. She tend to use his sense or feeling better than her logic. In “I’m nobody! Who are you?", She though that having a friend who understand her and accepts her as she is, is more important than being admired by a lot of people or being in crowd. While in “Success is counted sweetest”, she express how the loser, by suffering defeat still has in his heart the deep desire to win, while the winners can only wallow in the glow of victory.
MUHAMMAD MUALLIF
052084226
Hi..friends, it is an interesting poem to discuss each other.Through this blog we can share our idea about everything, especially Emily Dickinson's life.So, i invite you to read my opinion and also give a command.Now, what we are going to talk about is Emily Dickinson's, who was the most original 19th Century American Poets. She was noted for her unconventional broken rhyming meter and use of dashes and random capitalisation as well as her creative use of methaphor and overall innovative style.The Emily's life see that she decided to rebel against become christians and reject the church.Even she rejected the church as entity, she never did reject or accept God.She had individual concept of God.It started when the people of New England began to search for new meaning of life.They often doubted of that.I guess that, Emily Dickinson was influenced by her previous life in which was scarred and expressed her deep sorrow of her family's death.Even she didn't accept or reject God, she beliefed of death."Death is just the next logical step to life and compares to carriage ride or many other common placehappenings", Dickinson said.I conclude that the most important in Emily's life were love,religion, individuality and nature.
In my opinion, previous two poems are connected to individuality ( i'm no body! Who are you! ) and nature ( succes is counted sweetest ).She compared the nature (methaphor) with the humanity, as i know, humanity is a part of nature it must be understood. So that, this poem has different theme of previous two poems.
NIEKE HANDAYANI
English Education / 052084015
POETRY class A
Emily Dickinson was a woman who lived in times that are more traditional. She was born in Amherst Massachusetts; a small farming town that had a college and a hat factory. There, she was raised in a strict Calvinist household while receiving most of her education at a boarding school that followed the American Puritanical tradition. As a young woman, Emily Dickinson rejected comforting traditions, resisted male authority, and wrestled alone with her complex and often contrary emotions. In the nineteenth-century, religion was still the dominant issue of the day. Emily had faith in her own divinity, so perhaps she was yet more certain of God than her peers. She did not claim to fully understand Him, or even to have perennial faith in all His ways, but she certainly didn’t fear Him. To her, truth was in nature. In that beauty she could see and feel God directly. Emily did actually attend church regularly, sometimes traveling to hear some of the rousing and charismatic preachers. She was often moved by these sermons, perhaps as compelled by the speaker’s delivery and the construction of words as the message within them. But this was not enough to entice her to succumb to the fierce religious revival. One by one her friends received an inner calling and were ‘saved,’ officially accepting Christianity. Members of her close-knit family eventually followed suit, including her strong-willed father, and finally her brother, Austin, perhaps her closest ally. Emily would not commit to something she could not sincerely feel, even under the unthinkable social pressure that surrounded her.
In the poem "Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church", she questions the sincerity of those who attend church on Sunday on a customary basis. Through the use of comparing the formalities of church with her own celebration of the Sabbath through the appreciation of nature, Emily casually suggests that those in attendance at church may not be as sincere in their worship as she is. Emily ridicules the congregation as she accuses them of attending merely for show and to gain status in the community. Also, she argues with the notion that attending church alone will lead towards salvation, suggesting that it is her own actions of finding God in nature that will lead to the path of redemption. She argued that attending church alone will lead towards salvation, suggesting that it is her own actions of finding God in nature that will lead to the path of redemption.
In the poem, "Success is Counted Sweetest"; Emily's emphasis is less on humor and more on expressing irony. Here it is bitterness expressed towards the status or notion of success that is most felt by the reader as Emily reflects on the nature of success and how it can be best appreciated and understood by those who have not achieved it. While the previous poem expresses the poet's bitterness and sorrow with one aspect of her life, "I am Nobody" uses humor without irony to address another. The humor in the poem “Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church” is not as explicit as in the other poems discussed, nor is the irony as directly expressed as in "Success is Counted Sweetest". The reader can sense Emily's sarcasm in the opening lines of "Some Keep the Sabbath going to Church" - / I keep it staying home", and will react to its most definitive form in the closing lines of "So instead of getting to Heaven, at last - I'm going, all along." While the descriptive are humorous, Emily appears to be confessing her own individual, private communion with God to the reader. Thus she does not emphasize the humor in the comparison of the objects in order not to trivialize her own beliefs, but instead allows enough humor to enter the description to emphasize the poem with the child-like free spiritedness.
VENTY SEPTIANSARI
052084201
POETRY
RELIGION AND RELIGIOSITY OF EMILY DICKINSON
The words religion and religiosity may at times be used interchangeably, and at others a fine distinction must be made.I sense religion reflects ideas that are shaped and imposed by human beings in part for power and personal gain of few. I sense religiosity is a concept that empowers human beings to realize they control the evolution of their sense of self, connection to something beyond them, and their own destiny. The final direction of Emily's poetry, and the pressures that created it, can only be described as religious, using that word in its dimension of depth.
Emily inherited the Puritan traits of austerity, simplicity, and practicality, as well as an astute observation of the inner self, but her communication with her higher Self was much more informal than her God-fearing forefathers would have dared. Her family was far from poor, but she did not lead a lavish life, for the Puritans abhorred luxury and waste (even a waste of words, which trait the poet did well to inherit).
She had faith in her own divinity, so perhaps she was yet more certain of God than her peers. She did not claim to fully understand Him, or even to have perennial faith in all His Ways her poetry bears a continuing strain of doubt, but she certainly did not fear Him. The inner freedom this afforded her rare for a woman of her time brought her to the point of being almost cheeky in her familiarity and certainty. This confidence fed her poetry sumptuously, and gave it the well-known child-like quality. To her, truth was in nature. In that beauty she could see and feel God directly.
Emily did actually attend church regularly, sometimes traveling to hear some of the rousing and charismatic preachers who stamped their mark on that era. She was often moved by these sermons, perhaps as compelled by the speaker’s delivery and the construction of words as the message within them. But this was not enough to entice her to succumb to the fierce religious revival. One by one her friends received an inner calling and were ‘saved,’ officially accepting Christianity. Members of her close-knit family eventually followed suit, including her strong-willed father, and finally her brother, Austin, perhaps her closest ally. Emily would not commit to something she could not sincerely feel, even under the unthinkable social pressure that surrounded her.
Until the age of 30 she continued going to church, although she was excluded from certain meetings and services open only to those who had been ’saved’. She became increasingly reclusive throughout her 30s. It is tempting to see her seclusion as further evidence of spiritual asceticism. Her spiritual path was certainly intensely lonely in such a social climate, but she craved aloneness more and more, and seclusion somehow formed a symbiotic relationship with her art. Increasingly her art became an expression of her religiosity.
I also believe Emily seeing God in nature and felling Him around her. After all He created everything and therefore He is there, in nature and can be sensed. Religion and religiosity are two separate ideas. Religion is manipulation and man formed laws and regulations of Christianity.
I believe that we all have our own ways of finding God and our own ways of worship and no one should demean anyone else. We will all know the truth when our earthly journey has ended and there we will find all has ended in the same place. No matter how we find our way to God, He will be there during our journey and await us at our destination and I believe Emily understood this.
"Some keep the sabbath going to church" can be described as the expression of Emily's religiosity. the word "church" can explain her own religion.how did Emily find the eternity could not be defeated by religion's rule. she can find God by her own way.
"I'm nobody! who are you?" and "success is counted sweetest" can explain about the reflection of God in her achievement. it can be stated that these poems also support the theme of " some keep the sabbath going to church"
How Does Emily Dickinson See Religion And Religiosity?
Abd wakhid (052084220)
In my opinion, I saw that Emily Dickinson see religion much deeper than any usual people. We can prove it through her expressions in her poem. She might also have different theological belief on what way we worship the God. She was born and raised in Christian family, but felt pressured by her father to choose Christianity. This may cause distinction in her theological belief and perception of God. In her poem, she interprets religion and the idea of worship as an illusion. Some people may have the wrong interpretations on how they worship god.
In her poem, she figures out that people are going to church in Sabbath to be with god. They remind themselves about god behind the church doors. As if she implicitly explains to us that in order to be with god, we have to go to the church first. On the other hand, she suggested us that we can be with god simply by enjoying the nature, listening to a small song bird, bobolink as her chorister. In fact, many people have tried to be with god through listen the chorister behind the church door.
She interprets the voice of chorister in church as bobolink song. So, instead of listening to someone worship god for her, she will do it directly and have her own relationship. And instead of attending fancy church building built by man, Emily met the god in the natural way that she has provided. Perhaps, he said that god doesn’t require the finest and the best clothing for the presence of worshiping god when she said “some keep the Sabbath in surplice, I just wear wings”. She found that either church or nature could be the place where we can be with god. Dickinson seemed to be saying that she preferred the beautiful religious experience that God provided everyday in the world rather than the “long” sermons found behind church doors
Emily Dickinson seemed to suggest that Heaven was a reward at the end of the churchgoer’s life, if the faithful churchgoer attended church diligently. However, because of her daily walks with God, Dickinson was going all along. Dickinson felt she was already in heaven and there was no way that “in the end” she would not continue on to the celestial Heaven above. She compared the institution of church to nature. Dickinson suggested that she can receive the same religious sermons by communing with nature as those who attend church day after day.
All in all, Emily Dickinson might have shown us different point of view on the way how we worship the god. She was comparing the institution of church with nature. And I think she can interpret the way how we truly worship the god.
In her previous two poems, she told us that she is no body who tried to explore, understand her surroundings, religion, even god. And she found great joy in it.
IKA PUSPA A.
O52084010/CLASS A
ENGLISH EDUCATION
POETRY CLASSES
RELIGION AND RELIOGISITY OF EMILY DICKINSON
Emily Dickinson is one of the greatest American Poet. She was born on a well-known family because her paternal grandfather, Samuel Dickinson was one of the founders of Amherst College.
Emily Dickinson's family was religious, her parents Edward and Emily were raised their children with a strong Christian's tradition. in fact, Emily didn't feel comfort with her father's religion in Amherst. Knowing it, Emily's father tried to prevent it. Still, Emily Dickinson changed the conventional religious viewppointof her father, but she changed it for herself. She became unorthodox. it can be seen from her poem entitled "some keep the sabbath going to church" which told us that she preferred to pray at house rather than in church. "some keep the sabbath going to church, i keep it staying at home", Emily believed that without going to church, God will listen to her. Her greatest joy is by communing alone with God who will listen to her prays. Emily's religion experience was not a simple statement of belief, she reflected it in the experiences of ecstatic joy and the beauty of nature.
The poem entitled "I'm nobody!who are you?" used a theme of the intensely private place of oneself and the poem entitled "Success is the counted sweet" used a theme of the war. So those two poems do not have a similar theme with the poem entitled "some keep the sabbath going to church". But still all of those poem use the nature as the symbols.
In conclusion, Emily Dickinson wrote many poem that reflect the things that happened and saw in her life, the persons who influeced and adored by her.
RIZQILIYAH I.
PEND. REG A/052084004
Through her illness, loneliness and difference, Emily Dickinson has the different point a view in worshiping God. It might be caused by the repression from her father, especially about Christianity. In "Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church", she thought that it doesn’t matter for being different with others, because naturally the human being are able to worship the God with any facility, called nature, that the God has given to them. She doesn’t have to make everything up, as others’ well dressing for going to the Church because she believes that God has already equipped her with wing. She even doesn’t need the chorister since God provides the natural one called Bobolink.
Being controversial and different is the Dickinson style to express her thought. That is presented in her three poems, "I'm Nobody, Who are You?", "Success is Counted Sweetest." and "Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church". Instead of taking the general-thinking ideas, she simply prefers declaring the sarcasm through her writing.
REFERENCES
Pettinger, T. 2006. Short Biography Emily Dickinson. Retrieved November 23, 2008 from http://www.biographyonline.net/poets/emily_dickinson.html
"I'm nobody! Who are you?" by Emily Dickinson.2007. Retrieved November 23, 2008 from http://www.beyondbooks.com/lit71/1f.asp
ELFIRA FIKRIANA
052084020
English Education 2005
Poetry class A
Emily Elizabeth Dickinson was born in Amherst, Massachusetts. Her father, Edward Dickinson, was a prominent lawyer in Amherst, Massachusetts, as well as a U.S. representative. Dickinson was raised in a Christian family but felt pressured by her father to choose Christianity. In this poem, she was comparing the institution of church to nature.
In the first line of her poem which also becomes the title of the poem ” Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church”, Dickinson thought that someone does not have to go to church in certain time because it is possible to be with God simply everywhere by enjoying the nature. In her poem, Dickinson has compared every single kind of worship by going to church with her own way to worship to God by staying at home and enjoying the nature. In the line 3 “with a Bobolink for a Chorister”, She compared a small songbird, the Bobolink, with a song leader in the church. God had provided the beautiful sound of the songbird as his hymns, so why is a song leader required to lead that kind of song? She also stated that her sanctuary was an orchard not a fancy church building built by man. In line 5-6 Dickinson stated that while others may dress in their finest attire or Surplice, she merely wears her wings. Perhaps she was trying to ay that God does not need the best clothing but merely the presence of his servant in order to worship.
In the line 9-10, Dickinson seemed to be saying that she chose the beautiful religious experience that God had provided everyday in the world rather than the “long” Sermons found behind church doors. In line 11, Dickinson seemed to suggest that Heaven was the last reward for those who attended church regularly. However, because of her daily walks with God, Dickinson was going all a long. Dickinson felt that she was already in Heaven and there was no way to continue to go to Heaven anymore. She compared the institution of church to nature. Dickinson suggested that she can feel the same sense of religiosity as those who attend to church regularly.
Dickinson’s the way of thinking of church attendance may be influenced by the Bible itself. The fourth commandment commands that one remember the Sabbath and keep it holy (Exodus 20:8-11). However, this commandment does not state that church attendance is required, nor is worshipping (Christian 2003). Simply, the commandment requires that someone do not work and keep the day holy. Dickinson followed this belief by finding God’s holy works in nature way.
I think that the poem “Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church” also support the previous two Emily Dickinson’s poem which are “I’m Nobody Who Are You?” And “Success is Counted Sweetest”. Three of them reflect her life which she lived a mostly introverted and reclusive life.
References:
A Biography of Emily Dickinson's Life and Writing. (2006, May 31). Retrieved November 20, 2008, from http://www.echeat.com/essay.php?t=28952.
Morhall, S. (n.d.). The Spirituality of Emily Dickinson. Retrieved November 21, 2008, from http://www.poetseers.org/early_american_poets/emily
LAILY L MUHARRA
052084211
POETRY
THE BIOGRAPHY OF EMILY DICKINSON
Emily Dickinson is one of the American famous poem writers. She was born in the Amherst, Massachusetts on December 10, 1830, with name Emily Elizabeth Dickinson. She is the second daughter of Mr. Edward and Mrs. Emily Norcross Dickinson. She has one older brother, Austin and one younger sister, Lavinia. They grew up in a quiet, reserved family under the father’s command or authoritative. They were educated and cultured by their parents in the Christian way. They were expected to take up their father's religious beliefs and values without argument. Dickinson is hoped to be responsible for a family of her own. Her father kept her away from reading books that might change her mind, particularly her religious faith.
Dickinson’s family is well-known in Amherst. Her father, Edward Dickinson was a lawyer and served as the treasurer of Amherst College. Her grandfather was one of the Amherst College founder. The life in the nineteenth-century politics, economics, and social issues did not appear in her poem. Her father was also an active town official and served in the General Court of Massachusetts, The State senate and the United States House of Representatives. Being the daughter of the famous politician, it made her easy to get good education and attend in the Armhest Academy. Although she was success in education, she returned after one year at the seminary in 1848 to Amherst. Emily’s point of view was contrary to her father. She did not enjoy with the popularity of her family and also she did not fit to her father’s religion in Amherst. She began to take out her self from her environtment.
Emily Dickinson chose to withdraw herself not only from her father but also from the social life in Amherst. She dressed only in white and developed a reputation as reclusive eccentric. In her seclusion, she wrote many poems. She did draw upon her knowledge of the Bible, classical myths, and Shakespeare for allusions and references in her poetry. She also used contemporary popular church hymns, transforming their standard rhythms into free-form hymn meters.
She wrote many poems which were influenced by the Puritanism. In her poem “Some keep the Sabbath going to Church”, told us about her unorthodox view of how a person should live his or her spiritual life. Keeping the Sabbath by going to church may be fine for some people, but not for those who believe as Emily Dickinson does. In her opinion, going to church is not the only way to keep the Sabbath- one can keep it just as well at home. One of her untitled poem, explores her way of keeping the Sabbath. She opens her poem with a simple, blunt, to- the- point statement: "Some keep the Sabbath by going to church;/ I keep it staying at home,/" She does not trying to discourage people from going to church if that is what they choose. Rather, she states her own practice. She keeps the Sabbath not by going to church, but by staying at home. Some folks feel "at home" in church, but Dickinson feels more "at home" in nature. While some hearts revel in the sound of beautiful choir music, this poet's heart thrills rather to the sound of a bobolink making his "joyful noise" as he lifts his song of praise to God. When Dickinson worships God on the Sabbath, she looks out toward her orchard instead of upward to a dome. For her, the natural world makes a far better cathedral than the austere dome of a church. The orchard image suggests that Dickinson's worship experience is something fruitful, something worthwhile. The bobolink's happy song suggests peace and contentment on this calm, tranquil day. Once a week, the poet lays aside her everyday chores and takes time to rest, relax, and observe nature. It is her "Sabbath", a time for reflection and relaxation.
Emily Dickinson seems quite happy with the way she has chosen to keep the Sabbath. It is the right way for her. She does not have to wait until she dies to reach heaven, for heavenly glory surrounds her here on earth. Heaven becomes more and more a part of her as she spends time in God's beautiful natural world. She signs off her poem with the conclusion: "So instead of getting to heaven at last,/ I'm going all along."
I think there is a relationship between “Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church” and the two poems before, “I’m nobody! Who are you?” And “Success is Counted Sweetest”. From those poems, we can find the sarcastic in her poems. It is used to express the Dickinson’s idea about her life, the environment and her belief. In the “Success is Counted sweetest” is one of her way Emily Dickinson talked about the irony of the real life. She tried to show that what most people do and think is not totally true. Those three poems also used nature and God’s creature as symbols.
SRI WAHYUNING UTAMI
English Education
052 084 003
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN EMILY DICKINSON'S POEM AND EMILY DICKINSON'S RELIGIOUSITY.
Emily Dickinson is a famous poet who liked to live alone and spend her life in her house. One of her poem is "Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church." The poem tells about someone who doesn't want to go to the church like the common people in the speaker's environtment. I think the idea delivered by the poem is having a relationship with how Emily Dickinson saw the religion and religiousity in her life.
Since she was left by some people or things that she liked in her childhood, she became a recluse and asked for the God's presence like the common people in the church knew as "Father".Then, she spent the rest of her life in her house by only writing many poems and playing her piano. Kennedy and Gioia in their book entitled Literature : An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, and Drama state that Emily Dickinson stopped attending church, refused to endorse the Orthodox Congregationalist creed, and spent increasing time alone in her room, writing poems (2005:735). That situation was clearly having the same idea with the poem entitled "Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church" written by her. She chose poems as the ones where she could feel better and be the honest person who could tell the truth of life because she could not be easy to interact with the others in the society. There are also another evidence in a form of the following quotation of the conversation between Emily Dickinson and Thomas W. Higginson about Emily's thinking.
"If I read a book (and) it makes my whole body so cold no fire ever can warm me I know that is poetry. If I feel physically as if the top of my head were taken off, i know that is poetry. These are the only ways I know it." (Kennedy and Gioia, 2005:742)
Actually Emily Dickinson was born in a religious family. In her letter to Thomas W. Higginson, she told that her father, mother, brother, and sister were religious, except her because she thought that God in the church never gave a sign to her that He heard her prays. Besides, she also felt doubt about the God's presence because she thought that God could not confidently approach through Nature or through Doctrine. She prefered to think about the beauty of nature and art as the reflection of her religious experience. In another words, she liked standing on her feet and having her own world, better than following the others.
"For Emily, religious experience was not a simple intellectual statement of belief, it could be more accurately reflected in the beauty of nature, and the experiences of estatic joy."(Pettinger, 2006:2-3)
In a short, Emily wrote poems to deliver what she felt and thought as a form of her immortality based on her mind. Therefore, I do believe that the existance of the poem entitled "Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church" also supports the theme of the other Emily's poems entitled "I'm Nobody, Who Are You?" and "Success is Counted Sweetest" which are based on Emily's experience.
References :
Kennedy, X.J. and Dana Gioia.2005.LITERATURE : An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, and Drama.New York:Longman.
Pettinger,T.2006.Short Biography Emily Dickinson retrieved from http://www.biographyonline.net/poets/emily_dickinson.html.26/06/2006.page 1-6.
Rr.Putri Dwi J
052084011
From the reference I’ve read, and based on my understanding, Emily Dickinson was influenced by the Calvinism. The Calvinist believed that men had natural sin. And most of human would get hell. There was only small number would get heaven if they’re proclaiming their faith to Jesus Christ. But Emily didn’t accept that theory. She believed that someone will get heaven if he can pray to God peacefully. This rejection was reflected in her poems which mostly had meaning ‘being shut out of heaven’. It was shown in ‘Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church’. From the last two verse ‘So instead of getting to heaven, at last I’m going, all along’. She also refused to go to church every week. She preferred staying home. She didn’t care what people think about her attitude. People thought that she is the ‘looser’ that will get hell.
This poem also supports the theme of ‘I’m nobody! Who are you’. In this poem, she showed that she didn’t want to be somebody, means other person who believes the ‘original sin’ theory. She would rather choose to be nobody. She enjoyed her life in seclusion and simplicity.
DEWI NUR HIDAYAH
ENGLISH EDUCATION 2005
REG A / 052084018
Emily Dickinson showed the same theme in her three poems, that indicate herself as an extraordinary one in society. “ I'm nobody!Who are you?” tells us her own idea that being nobody will be good and she will get peace, whereas every body wants to be somebody. When nobody do not wants to be a looser, Emily can create some words that can show us how sweet is the success by someone who see it just like a dream, by the poem “Success is Counted the Sweetest”. And in the poem “ Some Keep the Sabbath Going ti Church” also shows her own way to keep the Sabbath. On the other hand, by her power that present in her beautiful and unique words in those poems, finally its show us that an ordinary one sometimes wants to be nobody, so those extraordinary idea can be acceptable.
From those three unique poems, “ Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church” is the poem that show Emily's religiosity. Looking from her biography as a woman from religious family who accept Christianity, Emily has different concept. Being a woman that well known for her unusual life of her self imposed social seclusion, she though that church is not the only way to keep the Sabbath. Staying “at home” that feels more like “ in nature” while some hearts revel in the sound of a bobalink can more joyful as she lifts his song of prise God than what people ordinary do in the Church. In the second and third stanza, we can see that observe the nature is the right way for her to reach heaven. So that she said she will going all along for heavenly glory surrounds her here on earth. In fact, we can see that Emily's religiosity was influenced by transcendentalism, with its influencing faith in the worth of the individual and its reliance on the goodness of the nature. It makes she though that heaven becomes more and more a part of her as she spends time in God's beautiful natural world that also present in her poems.
DWI ELOK LESTARI
(elok_pinkpiglet@yahoo.co.id)
052084209
POETRY
General Summary Emily Dickinson
Emily Dickinson, regarded as one of America’s greatest poets, is also well known for her unusual life of self imposed social seclusion. Living a life of simplicity and seclusion, she yet wrote poetry of great power; questioning the nature of immortality and death, with at times an almost mantric quality. Her different lifestyle created an aura; often romanticized, and frequently a source of interest and speculation. But ultimately Emily Dickinson is remembered for her unique poetry. Within short, compact phrases she expressed far-reaching ideas; amidst paradox and uncertainty her poetry has an undeniable capacity to move and provoke.
Early Life Emily Dickinson
Emily Dickinson was born on 10th December, 1830, in the town of Amherst, Massachusetts. Amherst, 50 miles from Boston, had become well known as a centre for Education, based around Amherst College. Her family were pillars of the local community; their house known as “The Homestead” or “Mansion” was often used as a meeting place for distinguished visitors including, Ralph Waldo Emerson. (although it unlikely he met with ED)
As a young child, Emily proved to be a bright and conscientious student. She showed a sharp intelligence, and was able to create many original writings of rhyming stories, delighting her fellow classmates. Emily’s father was strict and keen to bring up his children in the proper way. Emily said of her father. “his heart was pure and terrible”. His strictness can be shown through his censorship of reading materials; Walt Whitman for example was considered “too inappropriate” and novels had to be smuggled into the house. In response, Emily was highly deferential to her father and other male figures of authority. But in her own way she loved and respected her father, even if at times, he appeared to be aloof. At a young age, she said she wished to be the “best little girl”. However despite her attempts to please and be well thought of, she was also at the same time independently minded, and quite willing to refuse the prevailing orthodoxy’s on certain issues.
Analysis of the Poetry
In her opinion, going to church is not the only way to keep the Sabbath- one can keep it just as well at home. She opens her poem with statement: "Some keep the Sabbath by going to church;/ I keep it staying at home,/" She does not trying to discourage people from going to church if that is what they choose. Rather, she states her own practice. She keeps the Sabbath not by GOING to church, but by STAYING at home. Some folks feel "at home" in church, but Dickinson feels more "at home" in nature. For her, the natural world makes a far better cathedral than the austere dome of a church. The bobolink's happy song suggests peace and contentment on this calm, tranquil day. For her "Sabbath", a time for reflection and relaxation.
In the second and third stanzas, Dickinson expands on her attitude towards the Sabbath. The Sabbath is not a time to take oneself too seriously. The poet does not need to dress herself up in fancy clothes because she is already "wearing her wings" instead. She lets herself soar far above the cares of this world, for today is a holy day. As she beholds the beautiful plumage of the birds in the orchard, she feels as if she would like to fly, too. "And instead of tolling the bell for church, our little sexton sings." The sound of the church bell is a loud, harsh, gloomy sound. It speaks of formality and state, of gloom and sadness. The chipper little voice of the bobolink, on the other hand, is warm and joyful as he greets his tiny congregation of one. He is so happy to be alive. This merry fellow is joyful, unselfconscious, jubilant, and most of all, free. His song of praise is neither forced nor stilted, but rather natural and uninhibited. He awakens Dickinson with his special song on this glorious Sabbath morn. After listening to nature's praise, the poet finds that God himself does the preaching. A "noted clergyman", His message is clear, concise, and eloquent. It is never too long or dull because it is spoken through the beauty of nature. His message is forceful, concise, and to the point. It is something the poet enjoys rather than something that must be endured.
Emily Dickinson seems quite happy with the way she has chosen to keep the Sabbath. It is the right way for her. She does not have to wait until she dies to reach heaven, for heavenly glory surrounds her here on earth. Heaven becomes more and more a part of her as she spends time in God's beautiful natural world. She signs off her poem with the conclusion: "So instead of getting to heaven at last,/ I'm going all along."
Emily in this poem shows her desire to be unorthodox and she was successfully does it. Many people decide to celebrate the Sabbath in a church, but Emily think that it was waste time and not truly appreciating at all. Emily concludes that she won’t stop her life to work ship when she could do it well at home. Even if she does not get to heaven, she proclaims at least she will have had a full life that had been fittered away in a Church.
● In my opinion, this poem also support the theme of the two previous poem; I’m NO BODY! WHO ARE YOU ? and Success is Counted Sweetest, because as we already know, Emily is kind of person that reduced her social contacts, going out less and less into society. She spent most of her time in her house many of her poems refer to an invisible lover, an object of devotion. The poetry of Emily Dickinson was often deliberately vague. The object of her devotion may have been no person in particular, but some unknown aspect of the divine.
INDI SHOFI FIKRIA
052084207
ENGLISH EDUCATION DEPARTMENT
POETRY CLASS
ANALYSIS OF SOME KEEP THE SABBATH GOING TO CHURCH
BY EMILY DICKINSON
In “Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church”, I find that Emily Dickinson sees religion and religiosity as a simple thing. Dickinson expresses her rather unorthodox view of how a person should live in his or her spiritual life.
She suggests that most people celebrate the Sabbath by going to church to be with God, but she thinks it is possible to be with God by enjoying nature. She feels that time is better spent at home and especially with nature.
Emily makes comparisons between church and her home. She also compares a small songbird, the Bobolink, with a song leader in the church.
She states that some people dress up for going church, but she only wears her wings. Wings are symbolic of what God gives her, and they relate to her expression of the glory found in nature. She also states that instead of interrupting her life to go to church, she is going home where she can live in her life and get to heaven easily. The Sabbath and church are very important aspects of most Christians’ life. Emily Dickinson expresses how she feels about truly appreciating the Sabbath, and establishes her own kind of relationship with God. She feels that one can get to heaven easily by staying at home and in nature, which is God’s creation.
Those are contrary to her family. Emily’s father was a religious and political man who forced his views on his children. His conventional religious viewpoints and values became a challenge for Emily and later strengthened the convictions and ideas of her poetry. Dickinson was raised in a Christian family but she felt pressured by her father to choose Christianity. She suggested that she can receive the same religious sermons by communing with nature as those who attend church day after day.
And I think this poem also supports the theme of other poems, such as “I’m Nobody! Who are You?” and Success is Counted Sweetest.”
Diana Eka W.L
052084296
Some keep the Sabbath going to church.
Emily Dickinson’s poem “some keep the Sabbath going to curch” can be identified as an expression about her feeling toward celebrating the Sabbath by going to church. This poem is mainly telling about her view that being closed to God is not only to be at church day by day, but she can do it by just staying at home and reflecting it with nature. Here, she tried to establish her own kind of relationship with God. Emily Dickinson was raised in a Christian family but felt pressured by her father to choose Christianity. Emily could never accept the doctrine of “original sin” or “the saved one” (any doctrine appeared in Christian—especially for orthodox view). Despite remaining true on her own conviction, Emily was left with a sense of Exclusion from the established religion, and this sentiment inform much in her poetry.
In her poem “some keep the Sabbath going to church”, she starts her poem by making a simple statement that some people keep the Sabbath by going to church, but she prefer so stay at home. She suggested that staying at home can be the best way to communicate with God. Beside that, it is also possible for her to be with God simply by enjoying the nature. Here, nature is her representation as her own community that she built, and not everybody can join to her world. Her life is full of social exclusion. She makes comparison between church and her home (her home is her nature where she spent her entire time there) by stating that she can find a choir (not only in a church). The choir was the birdsong that she mentioned as a bobolink as it is stated in line three “with a bobolink for a chorister”. She also compared her “bobolink” with the choir lead by a choir leader in the church. She thinks that her “bobolink” is much more beautiful than the one in the church since God has gave us a beautiful sound of the song birds as his hymns, but why it should be replaced by a church’s choir. In line four, she stated that an orchard is her dome. To her, an orchard is her sanctuary. Instead of attending a fancy church building built by man, she prefers to meet with God in the natural world that he has provided, which is her home.
In the next line, Dickinson stated that while some people dress up for church, she merely wears her wings for her sanctuary. Wings are a holy symbols of what God gives her, and both relates to her expressions of the glory found in nature. Perhaps, she was trying to say that God doesn’t require the finest, most elaborate clothing, but the presence of her servant in order for worship take place. She also stated that it would be better to listen to a sexton sing rather than ringing the church bell. While people hear the bell ringing as their “holy call” to meet God, she assumed that the voice of sexton would be much better that the bell.
By using sarcasm, Dickinson said that God, who is a noted clergyman (selected priest), preaches to her through life (line 9) and “the sermon never long” (line 10). Here, she was trying to say that she preferred to experience her religious life that God provided everyday in the real world rather that listening to the “long sermon” given by clergyman behind the church doors. In the last two lines, she summed up her feeling on heaven as a reward for faithful churchgoers who attend the church diligently. However, because her daily life has already walked along with God, she was going all along. She felt that she was already in heaven and there was no way that “in the end” she would not continue on to the heaven above (line 12). She compared her institution of church to nature. She suggested that she has already received the same religious sermons by communing with nature as those who attend the church regularly.
Emily Dickinson’s poem reflects her loneliness and the speakers of her poems generally live in a state of desire, but her poems are also marked by the intimate recollection of inspirational moments which are decidedly life-giving and suggest the possibility of happiness.
NOVI AULUDYA LURZY
A / 052084210
POETRY
Emily Elizabeth Dickinson was born at the Homestead in Amherst, Massachusetts on December 10, 1830. She was born in religious family. She was a well-behaved girl. She showed her talent in music at the first time, after that, her talent in writing poems slowly comes up. And I will give some comments to her poem titled “Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church”.
Emily Dickinson briefly stated that she wasn’t interested in going to church. She prefers stay at home to go to church. But, Emily did actually attend church regularly. She has a reason why she thought so. It is really possible to be with God simply by enjoying nature. She thought that what is created by our creator can be a replacement of worship to God (instead of going to church). Her mindset can be set like that because of the influence of her father. At hat time, a crucial issue was the issue of religion. Her father was not too concerned with the religious views of his children. As the descendents of the Dickinson’s, she feels that she’s not well prepared with religion which is can open her eyes, see something in a proper way. She’s only known that men were inherently sinful and most humans were doomed to hell. There was only a small number who would be saved (The Calvinist belief). She couldn’t accept this kind of belief. Having no someone to guide, to tell and to teach her, she decided that she can easily be one of the saved people by appreciating the nature. Although most people think that the Sabbath and church are very important aspects of lives. She expresses how she feels about truly appreciating the Sabbath, and establishes her own kind of relationship with God. She feels that one can get to heaven just as easily by staying at home and in nature,
God’s creation.
This poem is one of her religious poems. From all of her poems (more than 1700 poems) that have many themes, we can categorize this poem into religious poem. As a memorable poet, she wasn’t concerned with one theme in producing poem. She has many themes. I have read “I’m nobody! Who are you?” and “Success is counted sweetest”. These poems have nothing to do with “Some keep the Sabbath going to church”. Or we can simply say that, there is no relation among these three poems, because each poem has its own theme.
Comment on a poem of Emily Dickinson: ‘Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church’
Irmayanti Dwi Lestari – 052084014
Emily Elizabeth Dickinson, a great writer who intentionally alianated her self from society, was a very productive writer composing over 1700 poems which was found hiddenly in her room after she died. Raised in a strong Puritan childhood, Emily as a child had to take up her father’s religious believe without any argument. Furthermore, her father is a very strict on leading his children to be in a proper way. He even censored what book’s been reading by his children. Emily actually rejected the doctrine of orthodox Puritanism, ‘original sin’, in which put pleasure as a sin and a human will be shut out of heaven unless they proclaim their believe to Jesus Christ as the only savior. Through one of her poems, Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church, Emily wanted to vocalize her thought in seeing the meaning of religy. She wanted to say that she’d better stay at home than going to the church. It’s clearly stated on the first two lines of the poem,
Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church –
I keep it, staying at home
…
Yes, because Emily thought that it’s useless to use tradition as a base of doing something. On this term, Emily considered people going to the church –in Sabbath usually– because of ‘something’ as she wrote on the title. And she divined ‘something’ here as the reason why they kept going to church was just because they have been doing it for years. They didn’t exactly go to the church for showing their faith to Jesus Christ, but people just wanted to be saved by Him, taken to the heaven on the next day, because the doctrine said so. Emily never followed the tradition because she had her own belief. She said,
Some keep the Sabbath surplice –
I just wear my wings –
…
And the sermon is never long,
So instead of getting to Heaven at last –
I’m going all along.
Related to her other two poems –I’m Nobody! Who are You? and Success is Counted Sweetest –, the voice of her poems including Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church, reflect a certain theme, i.e. comfort in being different and far from society with its all opinion because she wanted to keep her own opinion. When people dream of being ‘somebody’, she even sick of being ‘somebody’. When people generally pay attention to the result of a success, she prefers to pay more attention to the efforts done in the way to success. And when people trying hard to reach heaven, Emily Dickinson has already had her own heaven, in her lovely room keeping herself away from the people, letting herself to be nobody for the people.
emily is an exclusive women. at that time, people choose to obey waht the religion said about their lifes. but it is rather different to Emily, she choose to be a rebel from the puritan rules. she lives all the social life and wrotes lot of poetries in her own room. but not publish it until she live the world.
Nina Ramasari/A class
052084009
Emily Elizabeth Dickinson (December 10, 1830 – May 15, 1886) was an American poet. She was born in Amherst, Massachussets. She came from a high social class and well educated family. As any other rich girls, she lived a mostly introverted and reclusive life like a bird in a golden cage. Thus has built her character to be a shy girl, and a lone liner. Thought of as an eccentric by the locals, she became known for her penchant for white clothing and her reluctance to greet guests or, later in life, even leave her room.
During her teenage time, in 1845 came a religious missionary to Amherst. He brought 46 confession of faith among Dickinson’s peers. During the time Emily also got the influence and found herself comfortable in the peace that she find believes. As she wrote to her friend the following years "I never enjoyed such perfect peace and happiness as the short time in which I felt I had found my savior." She also expresses her closeness to god; she went on to say that it was her "greatest pleasure to commune alone with the great God & to feel that he would listen to my prayers". But it didn’t last long. Soon, she pulled herself from what he used to believe in. she stopped going to church and attended services regularly only for a few years. After that in 1852 she wrote a poem called “some keep the Sabbath going to church”.
In her poem she wrote, “god preaches, a noted clergy man” And the sermon is never long”. She was displaying her desire to be unorthodox. While many people worship the god together in church, took the clergyman as the middleman to bridge the relationship of man kind and god, Emily saw it as a waste of time and not really appreciate the Sabbath at all. For her, worship god doesn’t mean she has to go to church and all stuff but only by praying to god on her own, eliminating the position of a middleman, that’s how she can feel god. She concludes that worship can be done anywhere even at home equally.
The theme of the previous poem is also related to religion. In my opinion the poem entitled I am nobody who are you expresses Emily’s deep religiosity unlike “some keep the Sabbath going to church”. In the poem she tried to reminds us that we are nobody in front of god, so be a nice child of god. Don’t do bad things and forget all the standard of living, the glory, the popularity, and kill all hatred, hypocrisy, partiality, etc. if you think the same way as I do then we can be together to change the world into a better one. But we shall do it secretly otherwise they who don’t agreed will have us banished. Thus she emphasized on the materialism way of life and what we should do about it was to avoid it. Both poem delivered different message but still in the same theme. Thus we know that Emily has deep religiosity but she wanted to keep on her own without making any formal declaration of faith because the relationship between god and human is so special and intimate.
AQNIES MABELLA
052084217
Emily Elizabeth Dickinson (December 10, 1830 – May 15, 1886) was an American poet. Born in Amherst, Massachusetts to a successful family with strong community ties, she lived a mostly introverted and reclusive life. Dickinson was a prolific private poet, though fewer than a dozen of her nearly eighteen hundred poems were published during her lifetime. Dickinson's poems are unique for the era in which she wrote; they contain short lines, typically lack titles, and often utilize slant rhyme as well as unconventional capitalization and punctuation.
Emily Dickinson's poem, "Some keep the Sabbath going to Church - " is clearly an anti-puritanical poem, following in the tradition of Walt Whitman's liberated verse and Emerson's ideology. It criticizes the church as she saw it, as well as espousing a more natural religion. She thought that while most people hypocritically go to service, she actually practices her religion - without going to church. This is a celebration of the Protestantism that formed this country, and that, at its extreme, renounces all need for formal or communal worship: liberation from the Catholic Church, which Christ instituted, to the Protestant Church, founded by misinformed but ardent believers, to the beginnings of spiritism, as seen here in "free worship," to today's existential but "liberated" malaise. Dickinson's poem may have some validity in her criticisms of the church as she saw it, but in rejecting the members of the congregation, she rejected the church as well.
To paraphrase Dickinson, "we're going, all along" - and it will only be through "mercy" that we shall be brought out of our own "Pagan land" to treat the God, and that which He founds and ordains, with the respect He deserves, it is so because Emily Dickinson referred to herself as a pagan.
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