Symbols, Imagery, Wordplay
Form and Meter
Ahem. It's time to stretch your vocal muscles, Shmoopoets. Do your scales, take some deep breaths, and break out into song. Oh, you need a tune? How about the "Battle Hymn of the Republic"? And som...
Speaker
This is one bummed out speaker, and yet, there's hope. Sure, she seems a bit preoccupied with her own grief and suffering—always comparing it to that of others and such. But she also is heartened...
Setting
While Dickinson did occasionally drop her readers into a specific setting or two, in "I measure every Grief I meet," we're very much in her mind, rather than any specific location. And that's coolâ...
What's Up With the Title?
Here's the thing: nothing's up with the title because this poem doesn't actually have a title. In fact, Dickinson never titled her poems, so over the years, editors have simply given them numbers,...
Calling Card
It's never hard to spot a Dickinson poem. In addition to her powerfully abstract ideas and keen intellect, you're sure to spot it if only for the way it looks on the page: dashes up the wazoo, four...
Tough-o-Meter
Aside from a few tricky turns of phrase and a Biblical allusion that might be lost on those not in the know, this poem isn't about to throw you any curve balls. In fact, it's almost deceptively sim...
Trivia
In addition to her poor eyesight and problems with congested lungs, some critics claim that Dickinson suffered from what we would now call anxiety or agoraphobia. (Source.)
While modern readers may...
Steaminess Rating
Dickinson was a bit of a shut-in, so don't look for anything steamy here.
Allusions
Calvary (36)