Ideals Are the Fairly Oil
poem 983
Ideals Are the Fairly Oil - meaning Summary
Ideal Versus Practical Need
Dickinson contrasts abstract ideals with lived necessity. She likens ideals to oil that eases the wheel of progress, useful in theory, but when the central axle moves—when reality demands action—the observer "rejects the Oil." The short poem registers a skeptical view: inspiration or principle assists momentum but often fails to satisfy immediate, practical needs. It captures a tension between moral aspiration and bodily, pragmatic response.
Read Complete AnalysesIdeals are the Fairly Oil With which we help the Wheel But when the Vital Axle turns The Eye rejects the Oil.
Feel free to be first to leave comment.