We could totally see protesters writing this poem on their poster board when they're protesting whatever they're protesting. Yeah, it's about madness, but it's also about how new ideas that go against society's status quo seem crazy. It's a pattern, right? Some freethinker comes up with a new idea. Everybody says that person's crazy. But generations later everybody is talking about how ahead of her time the freethinker was while they're simultaneously oppressing some other freethinker somewhere.
Questions About Society and Class
- Do you think the speaker is a big fan of society as a whole? How can you tell?
- In what way does the speaker say society beats down on the little people?
- What historical societal issues might the speaker be referencing in the poem? To what modern-day issues could the poem be applied?
Chew on This
Try on an opinion or two, start a debate, or play the devil’s advocate.
The poem is a satirical look at the way mainstream society stomps on individuals with new ideas.
The poem is a reaction to the glaringly awful societal injustices of Dickinson's day like oppression of women and slavery.