Emily Dickinson seems to view poetry as a means of finding the overlooked yet infinite value of ordinary, domestic, and small events. This is especially apparent in poem #446, “This was a Poet—.“
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This was a Poet -
It is That
Distills amazing sense
From Ordinary Meanings -
And Attar so immense
From the familiar species
That perished by the Door -
We wonder it was not Ourselves
Arrested it – before -
Of Pictures, the Discloser -
The Poet – it is He -
Entitles Us – by Contrast -
To ceaseless Poverty -
Of Portion – so unconscious -
The Robbing – could not harm -
Himself – to Him – a Fortune -
Exterior – to Time -
In this poem the speaker is not speaking as a poet, but as a reader of poetry, describing the worlds a poet can take one to through such economical forms and inspiration. In line 3, the speaker says “Distills amazing sense/from Ordinary Meanings—.” Dickinson gives a general explanation of the virtues of poetry and its ability to draw insightful conclusions from everyday life. However, the next line, “And Attar so immense,” clarifies that her previous lines were in fact more specific. The dual meaning of “sense” (scents), which at first doesn’t seem applicable, specifies that the conclusions drawn from observing the ordinary are often sensual, and perhaps affect the reader in a more basic and human way than prose. The meaning the poet finds in the ordinary is often one that is primarily felt, rather than thought. The next stanza, in which the speaker says this “Attar” comes from a “…familiar species/That perished by the Door” (line 6-7), rearticulates the fact that others often overlook what a poet finds meaningful, and this neglected “species” therefore dies. It is the poet’s job to show the readers what they have been missing, especially when it is so close to their lives as to be “by the Door.”
In the following line the speaker shows her continual surprise at being shown meaning so close to her life. It is interesting that Dickinson chooses to speak as a reader of poetry rather than as a poet, as it shows a humble empathy with the reader. Clearly, Dickinson has felt similarly about the work of other poets as she wants the reader to feel about her own work, which is perhaps why she was drawn so powerfully to poetry. In stanza 3, the speaker restates poetry’s ability to reach the senses, yet this time, “Of pictures” (line 10), instead of scents. In the final stanza, the speaker concludes by explaining the eternal quality of poetry and the observations of the world they articulate. By saying that “Robbing—could not harm–/Himself” (line 15), Dickinson says that the gifts of poetry are infinite. The generosity of the poet is different than a more material generosity because it is never depleted. These words comment on the common-sense observation that words satisfy us in a different way than the tangible world, since they can never be completely used. However, this also speaks of the universality of poetry, as it’s reliance on “familiar species” make it a fortune anyone could find useful. Dickinson seems to think this fortune is useful across the world, but also across generations. It is “Exterior—to Time—“ (line 17). Again, since Dickinson is speaking as a reader of poetry, we can see the extent of the influence past writers have had on her. In her quiet life in Amherst, Dickinson certainly felt a stronger kinship with Shakespeare than anyone from her rigid and conventional hometown.