When One Has Given Up One’s Life
poem 853
When One Has Given Up One’s Life - meaning Summary
Letting Go After Surrender
The poem considers emotional lightness after relinquishing one’s central commitment or life. Dickinson compares releasing the remaining attachments to dusk letting go of the western sky, suggesting a calm, inevitable separation. Small residual presences—the lingering mountain peaks and a faint trace like iodine on a cataract—signal muted regret or memory rather than pain. The tone is resigned and quietly observant, framing loss as a gentle, natural conclusion.
Read Complete AnalysesWhen One has given up One’s life The parting with the rest Feels easy, as when Day lets go Entirely the West The Peaks, that lingered last Remain in Her regret As scarcely as the Iodine Upon the Cataract.
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