Before I Got My Eye Put Out - The Poetry of Emily Dickinson: Crash Course English Literature #8

Is this a peaceful death? barely. The silence of the room is interrupted by the buzzing of a fly. However, it is through the entire final rhyme that Dickinson offers us some peace and closure that we did not find in the first two stanzas. Let's return to an old topic. Although we live in a culture saturated with images, this is a good reminder that language is made up of words, and it may seem to you that I am extrapolating too much from the text by saying that perfect rhyme brings peace, but I remember the story. of Mozart's children, and how they played an endless series of scales to provoke... his father, who would eventually have to go to the piano and finish it.

Poetry is not just a series of images, it is metrical and prosodic, and we long for a beautiful rhymed conclusion at the end of a poem. That is why sonnets end with two harmonious verses. Dickinson gives us this ending and then gives us a fucking run. The ghost of the poet of contradiction still haunts us. Thank you for watching the Crash Course

literature

miniseries. Next week we will begin a year learning together about American history. "America: give me my freedom or give me a big hamburger." And now non-Americans start complaining that we are shallow, selfish, and call ourselves Americans, even though this is actually America.

But, my friends, even if you don't live here, American history matters to you because we are always involved in its affairs. Thanks for watching. I will see you next week. Crash Course is directed and produced by Stan Miller, the script supervisor is Meredith Danko, the associate producer is Danica Johnson, and I write the episodes. I used the names of writers I love instead of cursing every week. That tradition has ended, but a new one will begin next week. If you have questions about today's video, you can ask them in the comments section below and our team of literary specialists, including Stan's mother, will answer them.

Thanks for watching and as we say in my home country: "Don't forget to be cool."