After Great Pain, a Formal Feeling Comes
After Great Pain, a Formal Feeling Comes - context Summary
Published Posthumously in 1891
This poem was not published during Emily Dickinson's lifetime; it appears in Poems by Emily Dickinson, Second Series, issued in 1891. The poem reached readers as part of the posthumous effort to collect and organize her manuscripts. Its inclusion in the 1891 volume helped establish Dickinson’s reputation by presenting works that had circulated only in private letters or manuscripts. Because it was edited and presented after her death, readers should note the publication context when considering questions of text, punctuation, and order relative to Dickinson’s originals.
Read Complete AnalysesAfter great pain, a formal feeling comes– The Nerves sit ceremonious, like Toombs– The stiff Heart questions was it He, that bore, And Yesterday, or Centuries before? The Feet, mechanical, go round– Of Ground, or Air, or Ought– A Wooden way Regardless grown, A Quartz contentment, like a stone– This is the Hour of Lead– Remembered, if outlived, As Freezing persons recollect the Snow– First–Chill–then Stupor–then the letting go–
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