Poem Analysis - You Re Right

A Difficult and Costly Path

Emily Dickinson's "You'Re Right" presents a stark and somewhat cynical view of salvation. The poem begins with an agreement to the difficulty of achieving righteousness, then delves into the high "cost" of eternal life, and concludes with a simplistic, almost sardonic, depiction of the afterlife. The tone shifts from acknowledgment of a challenging truth to a businesslike appraisal of salvation's price, finally ending with a surprisingly blunt and possibly skeptical pronouncement on Heaven and Hell. The overall effect is one of questioning the conventional religious narrative.

The Price of Salvation

One of the central themes is the **cost of salvation**. Dickinson uses financial imagery to illustrate this. The opening lines, "You’re right the way is narrow / And difficult the Gate," establish that entry to Heaven is not easily attained. The next stanza expands on this idea, comparing the difficulty to the expense of "purples," a color associated with royalty and high status. Dickinson then equates the price of entering heaven with "the price of Breath," emphasizing the all-encompassing commitment required. The subsequent line about "Discount of the Grave / Termed by the Brokers Death!" further cements the financial metaphor; death is depicted not as a spiritual transition, but as a business transaction, with death brokers playing a central role.

Questioning Traditional Beliefs

The poem subtly questions traditional religious beliefs. While the first two stanzas acknowledge the established doctrine of a difficult path to salvation, the final stanza, "And after that there’s Heaven / The Good Man’s Dividend / And Bad Men go to Jail / I guess," feels almost dismissive. The phrase "I guess" injects uncertainty and doubt into the otherwise definitive pronouncements about Heaven and Hell. This single phrase undermines the certainty of religious dogma. Is Dickinson genuinely unsure, or is she employing irony to highlight the simplistic and perhaps inadequate nature of these beliefs?

Death as a Transaction

A recurring symbol in the poem is **death itself**, portrayed not as a release or a spiritual journey, but as a business deal. The "Discount of the Grave / Termed by the Brokers Death!" uses commercial language to describe mortality. This imagery suggests that even in death, there is a transaction occurring, a price to be paid. The "brokers" represent a sort of middleman in the process, further dehumanizing the experience of dying. By framing death in such a transactional way, Dickinson may be critiquing the institutionalization of religion and the ways in which it commodifies even the most profound aspects of human existence.

A Cynical Glimpse into Eternity?

In conclusion, "You’Re Right" offers a critical perspective on the path to salvation and traditional religious concepts of the afterlife. Dickinson utilizes financial imagery and a tone that oscillates between acknowledgment and skepticism to explore the cost of righteousness and the simplistic nature of common views on Heaven and Hell. The poem’s final "I guess" lingers in the reader’s mind, prompting us to question the certainty of accepted religious narratives and to consider whether the pursuit of salvation is truly worth the price. The poem might be interpreted as a veiled critique of religious dogma and a call for individual introspection and questioning rather than blind acceptance.