Abstract
Though Dickinson is often viewed in a fragmentary way, nature is what unifies her as a poet, since she decided to ground herself in it, quite literally. So too I argue, in contrast with the recent scholars who view Dickinson more relativistically, that nature is the very thing which helps us to answer the question of how–and how much–her poetry can tell truth. Dickinson’s intense and vivid natural metaphors throughout her poetic corpus demonstrate that metaphor, especially if it is grounded in an existing facet of nature, is the vehicle for the revelation of truth in her poetry. Just as nature can reveal truths to us which are impossible to define in words, the artistic slant-telling of metaphors communicates truth to us clearly while circumventing our impulse to control it. I demonstrate the way in which Dickinson interprets metaphor–as nature expresses it–through the poem “Tell all the truth but tell it slant–,” and then portray the poetics of nature in action through the poem “Flowers–Well–If anybody–”. This latter poem also further explains how we must respond rightly to nature and the truths it contains. The consequences of my thesis have a significant impact on how Emily Dickinson’s nature poetry should be studied with a more integrated, holistic view towards nature and language on the poet’s own terms, rather than through divided scholarly lenses.