Wild Nights! Wild Nights!

Wild Nights! Wild Nights! - context Summary

Composed 1861, Published 1890

Written in 1861 and first published posthumously in 1890, this brief lyric by Emily Dickinson is often read as an intense declaration of longing that contrasts with her reclusive public life. Using nautical and Edenic imagery, the speaker imagines abandoning instruments of navigation and surrendering to an intimate, ecstatic union. The poem’s urgency and compactness amplify its emotional thrust, inviting readings that range from romantic desire to spiritual yearning. Its posthumous publication shaped reception, positioning the poem within Dickinson’s wider reputation for private passion and profound interiority.