Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul,
And sings the tune without the words,
And never stops at all,
And sweetest in the gale is heard;
And sore must be the storm
That could abash the little bird
That kept so many warm.
I've heard it in the chillest land,
And on the strangest sea;
Yet, never, in extremity,
It asked a crumb of me.
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Emily Dickinson's form and speech cannot be matched, such concise and absolute ability to say the most powerful of things in a single phrasing
that indeed is the kind of poetry one should read and keep learning from
Regarding the message, hope indeed is something ethereal, and to have the bravery to describe it, must be something of invaluable worth -
From guest The Lizard King (contact)
nice little song... makes you kinda wanna live... but nothing can replace the death -
From guest kristopher soto (contact)
wow this poem is great but i hope it has simile and methaphor and personification.This myt help me from my homework. -
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From guest meghan (contact)
hope is great how did she create it.what's the tone how come it's so popular.
MOD MESSAGE
Sorry but your teacher wants YOU to do the homework. You could try reading the other comments as well as the authors notes. -
your poem
From guest meghan elizbeth green (contact)
hope is so awesome. how did you create it.
MOD MESSAGE
Sorry megan but Mz Dickinson died a long time ago! -
theme
From guest -B.RiCKS (contact)
To me personally the theme of the poem”hope is the thing with feathers” is: hope is always there for those who need it. Hope doesn’t need spoken words and is always there no matter what. Hope comes unexpectedly and a lot of people wish for it. -
Fabulous metaphor.....
Don't know if she was the first, but hope as a bird.....keen metaphor indeed!
"Sings the tune without the words" - there's some quality in there playing with my perepherals, quite haunting, actually.....
Sincerely,
~ Janet ~ -
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Stunning piece by a brilliant author. Not a whole lot more to say; it shows how you don't need pages and pages to say something powerful.
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And no, Emily, Hope does not demand, ask or coerce.
And whose feathers are not easily ruffled!
A Fan -
Great
If no one has ever seen it, make inquiry at your Public Television Station of a program entitled The Belle of Amherst starring Julie Harris as Emily. They may have the show on cassette or DVD.
Ms Harris does a wonderful job as Emily and many of her works are therein contained. You will not be disappointed! -
This little bird is living at my place at the moment. I've never thought about giving the feeling of 'Hope' a warm body. I envy Emily thgat she could see it in such a way.
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Lovely! Made me think instantly of the dove of peace. Hope is something we can hang on to that doesn't rely on our mortal powers, it is something that lifts us despite ourselves. Wonderful!
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As a fan of Emily, I see that this was from the collection whereby assistant producers gave them titles. In all truth, she hardly EVER titled a poem. No one knows why. Some guess she was just one of those writers who thought in sequels that were hand-in-hand with the seasons, their time slot and their reflections.
Impressive, this one was written earlier in her writing timeline before she..*ahem* either sniffed monkshood sprouts from her backyard kingdom..lol or found the key to her dominant father's liquour cabinet.
I just love, love, love it! -
Meaning To It
From guest Annette Brown (contact)
This poem is a very rich meaning to it, it helpes people understand things about life and not alot of poets do that in a poem anymore. Back when Emily Dickinson was alive she was a strong and well born poet ready to be heard for, she changed 1 thousand poeples lives and now I'm one mre person to add to them! -Annette Brown- -
That little hope bird is what keeps me going. She was right on with her metaphor though. Hope birds never do ask for anything in return. Beautiful.
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From guest hose30 (contact)
I like her description of hope. I like the simplicity of her poem. I like the originality of the poem.I think that poem can be simple yet deep by the words spoken. I think Emily coveered it here. She was a great writer. -
poem
From guest hose30 (contact)
I love this poem. I her simplicity of her words. I am a fan of simplicity. I think it touches . Because you want ot be heard. You cant be heard if someone dont understand what you have written. She was definitely a great writer.She was a heartfelt writer. You could feel it in her words. She also had great imagery. -
very good
I'm not used to reading from these classic poets from the past. I want to learn from them and hopefully I will learn from this. This poem touches everyone around here. Emily Dickinsin is one of the best in the world I can relate to this poem. -
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Sweet
This is a good poem. This one is a big favorite of mine. Emily Dickinson is one of the best poets of all time. She is one of my favorites. -
the description of hope in the first stanza seems more of a blithe and easy nature...
but the second stanza points out that it could even defeat the storm... if it was a battle between the hope and storm... and so the little bird reference could be hope...
third stanza says about her views of hope existing ... even in the most hostile or strange situations...
but in very extremes ... clinging to hope...
seems like we are actually sacrificing or exhausting a part of ourselves...
thus the poem ends... with a tinge of sarcasm... -
in this poem she is saying that even though u dont think its there hope shall always be there...and that even the smallest amount of hope can brave the mightiest storm
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I love this poem especially since ive heard the song of this. I love it and i love Emily dickinson! good job i too am a poet!
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She has hope is quotations because shes personifying it...maybe. I'm pretty sure shes not mocking it, but what do I know?
KK -
i enjoyed this poem, but i'm not sure if emily is honestly saying she believes in hope or if is she mocking it, why does she have hope in quotations?
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she means hope can be anything
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I think this poem is cool.
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Unlike her parents, Emily Dickinson was not a religious person. However, some of her poetry seems to point to the fact that she may have been an agnostic, one who believes in a higher deity, but not in any particular religious sect. One such example is a poem entitled, “Hope is the Thing with Feathers.”
Personified as a bird, Dickinson creates an illusion of freedom in life. Even though there is only one bird mentioned, several qualities that derive from different species describe the bird; from the soft flitting of the wings, to spans that relates to damaging storms.
The structure of the piece is in three, four-lined stanzas. Although Dickinson does not rhyme, her poem flows neatly into concise concepts, highlighted with assonance. In the version that was read for this essay, the use of her trademark dashes was non-existent, replaced by semicolons and commas.
Out of the entire poem, the last stanza leaps out unto the eye. The beginning of the poem entails the spirituality of the bird. The second stanza compares the avian to earth and its many moods. The last few lines bring the poem full-circle, and usurps the attention onto the relationship between the narrator and the bird. She attempts to continue on with her original nature-based theme, yet makes a decision in the last two lines of the poem. It reveals her philosophy on human nature and soul, both in humans and animals. Soul is the same in everything. It shows no discrimination between or for any species. The soul, wanting nothing in return, through all of its gifts and hope that it can bring. Hope is found in many things, objects in which one would never have used normally if it had not been already ordained as such.
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This is a real good poem ...... something i have learned is you need to ask 1.What is the tone 2. Who is the speaker and 3. What is the message and the message is really good so ask yourself those 3 questions and aswer them.....
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makes you think
I love it. it makes such a impact in me. I love the part "and sings the tune with out the words" -
very beautiful
Emily Dickenson has a complete command over her deep inner feelings , this is a wonderful poem. -
Classic Dickinson.The harmonious semi-rhymes that categorize Emily's writings are here in full force,making the poem not just a mental playground but a soothing lullaby.One verse sticks out in my mind,its helpless generousity permeating the outer coating of close-minded criticism:"It asked a crumb—of Me."
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well written miss emily, the rhymes are very well used, and the last stanza stuck out for me...what with the "yet, never, in extremity" made me wonder, where the hell that is....good one
peace
chris
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