Publication

Publication - meaning Summary

Thoughts Aren't for Sale

Dickinson criticizes publication as an auctioning of the mind and rejects the idea that poverty justifies selling intellectual or spiritual purity. She prefers remaining morally 'white' before the Creator rather than commercializing thought. The poem argues that ideas belong to their divine source, not to those who profit from their physical expression. Religious goods may be traded, but human spirit should not be reduced to a price.