Read The Collected Poems of Emily Dickinson (Barnes & Noble Classics Series) Online

Authors: Emily Dickinson

The Collected Poems of Emily Dickinson (Barnes & Noble Classics Series) (28 page)

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192

Urbain-Jean-Joseph Leverrier (1811-1877), a French astronomer who discovered evidence of the planet Neptune.

193

Thomas H. Johnson, editor
of The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson
(see For Further Reading) dates this poem from 1862; perhaps Dickinson is commenting on the Civil War.

194

Cut off, shortened.

195

Scimitar; a curved sword.

196

Gold coins once used as currency in some European countries.

197

Scarf worn around the neck; necktie.

198

Chief of the twelve Apostles; traditionally regarded as the first bishop of Rome.

199

Flock of sheep.

200

Small, brownish finch.

201

Quote from “The Jesus Prayer”: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on
me, a sinner.”

202

Irrevocable.

203

Delicate lace.

204

Relating to Moses, the Hebrew prophet who led the Israelites out of Egypt.

205

Covered shelter; hiding place.

206

Spread.

207

Down of an eider duck.

208

Wealth or riches, especially when dishonestly acquired.

209

Army commander in the ancient Roman Republic.

210

Proceeds.

211

Lifeless.

212

Town of northern Italy known for its marble quarries.

213

In pursuit.

214

Hot southerly winds.

215

Area in a church containing the altar and seating for clergy and choir.

216

Study or examine carefully; memorize.

217

Unabsolved (as by a confession).

218

Art or study of standard spelling.

219

Unaccompanied part-song for three or more male voices, popular in the eighteenth century.

220

Lured away.

221

Oily aromatic resin from plants.

222

Seventy (a score is equivalent to twenty).

223

Bearing or manner.

224

Circumlocution, or long-winded speech.

225

Always.

226

Scale indicators on a clock.

227

Pen name of the English novelist Charlotte Brontë (1816-1855).

228

Town in Yorkshire, a county in northern England where Brontë spent most of
her life.

229

Plant in the lily family; in Greek poetry and mythology, the flower of Hades and
the dead.

230

Gnatlike fly.

231

Susan Dickinson, Emily’s friend and the wife of her brother, Austin.

232

In Greek mythology, the garden of the Hesperides contained the golden apples
given to Hera as a wedding gift.

233

Mount Etna, a volcano in Sicily.

234

Tenerife (formerly Teneriffe) is the largest of the Canary Islands of Spain.

235

Muscle.

236

People devoted to sensuous pleasure and luxurious living.

237

Throughout the Bible, beings confronting God do not look at him directly.

238

Peter Parley’s Winter Evening Tales
(1829), by American writer Samuel Goodrich,
was a popular book of didactic tales for children.

239

Scientific study of insects.

240

Escutcheon; a shield or shield-shaped emblem bearing a coat of arms.

241

Blocks of metal, such as gold.

242

William “Captain” Kidd (c.1645-1710), British sea captain and pirate.

243

In Greek mythology, three goddesses called the Fates controlled a person’s life.
Clotho spun the thread of life; Lachesis measured its length; Atropos cut it.

244

High or mountainous land, particularly the Highlands of central and northern Scotland.

245

Purifying.

246

Relating to Etruria, an ancient country of west-central Italy.

247

Companion of the legendary medieval hero Robin Hood.

248

Character in a fairy tale by the French author Charles Perrault, who marries and then murders one wife after another.

249

Felt-like material, often bright green, used to cover gaming tables.

250

Woman’s long dress or skirt (archaic).

251

Small brook.

252

North American bird.

253

Examiner, reader.

254

Propitiation is an act of appeasement or conciliation.

255

Measured the depths of; understood.

256

Fine-grained quartz with colored bands or clouding.

257

Midday (archaic).

258

Numbers; zeros.

259

During the reign of the emperor Augustus (27 B.C.-A.D. 14), Rome enjoyed a
flourishing of art and culture.

260

Restores; reimburses.

261

Subordinate or dependent.

262

Wings.

263

Small territorial divisions of a country.

264

The reference is to the English poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806-1861), who lived in Italy for many years.

265

Relating to a duke or dukedom.

266

Enclosed, or imprisoned.

267

Burial shrouds.

268

Ninth-century B.C. Hebrew prophet who, according to the Bible, was carried skyward in a chariot of fire (see 2 Kings 2:11).

269

1 Corinthians describes Christ’s resurrection; the poem specifically refers to 1 Corinthians 15:42-43: “So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in corruption: it is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory”(KJV).

270

Bandits (Italian).

271

Daggers with slender blades.

272

In Greek mythology, an immortal woodland goat-man given to unrestrained revelry.

273

Highly reactive nonmetallic element; a luminous substance.

274

Possibly an allusion to Old Testament passages: Job states that man’s “foundation
is in the dust” (Job 4:19, KJV); Abraham claims that he is “but dust and ashes”
(Genesis 18:27, KJV).

275

Ghostly apparitions; phantoms.

276

In Greek mythology, a renowned poet and musician.

277

In the Bible (Genesis 32:22-32), Jacob wrestles by the Jabbok River (a tributary
of the Jordan) with an angel who turns out to be God.

278

Face of God.

279

Robber, or bandit.

280

Myrrhs are bitter resins used in perfume and incense; mochas are pungent Ara-
bian coffees.