Excerpt from Taught By Thirst: Emily Dickinson, Nature, Humans, and Publishing.

Other scholars point to the dark side of Dickinsons fascination (or preoccupation) with nature. Seth Archer wrote of her avoidance of physical society as symptomatic of depression, explaining, An occasional high-Romantic in other verses, Dickinson tends to root her poems of mental anguish in physical phenomena. . . . After all, for Dickinson, the natural world may have been the only world there was (Archer 262-3). Archer acknowledges that the poetry which resulted from this anguish once filtered through nature imagery is rich and beautiful, but recognizes the sadness present in many of the works. However, this does not negate the joy present in many of Dickinsons poems with their exclamation points and observations. This portion of Archers critique also makes it sound as though there is something about preferring nature to society which leads one to depression rather than depression fueling a desire to be alone (though he does elaborate on this elsewhere in his article). It also ignores occasions like the one in which Dickinson connects to Lady Franklin through nature poetry. V. Vasanthi has a more positive perspective on Dickinsons connections between nature and mortality, commenting on how Dickinson associated nature with death and poetized this association in a unique way. According to her, human life gained significance only after death by blending with nature (Vasanthi). Vasanthi goes on to cite one of Dickinsons poems as an example of this, as the poet wrote: Safe in their alabaster chambers, Untouched by morning and untouched by noon, Sleep the meek members of the resurrection, Rafter of satin, and roof of stone. (Dickinson, Safe in their alabaster chambers) This verse presents the dead sleeping, buried, untouched, and safe. The second stanza presents meaningless if joyful noise as bees babble and birds sing ignorantly. The third contains a grand passage of time as empires rise and fall while the sleeping dead remain still and safe. Death, in this poem, is the only permanence. It is where nature and humanity meet to form eternity. Yes, there is darkness in Dickinsons nature poems, but it is the darkness necessary for contrast and a darkness which reflects real natural life.

Works Cited Archer, Seth. I Had a Terror: Emily Dickinsons Demon. Southwest Review, 94.2 (2009): 255-273). Dickinson, Emily. Safe in their alabaster chambers. PoemHunter.com. Web. Nov 10, 2013. Vasanthi, V. A Biographical Study of Emily Dickinsons Preoccupation with Death. Language in India, 12.5 (2012): 712-719.