Hello readers, I'm writing this blog as a thinking activity given by the Department of English, MKBU. In this blog I am going to discuss a Poetry by Emily Dickinson named 'I'm nobody! Who are you?
About Poet (Emily Dickinson):
Emily Elizabeth Dickinson was born on December 10, 1830 at Amherst, Massachusetts, U.S. and died on May 15, 1886 at Amherst. She was an American lyric poet who lived in seclusion and commanded a singular brilliance of style and integrity of vision. With Walt Whitman, Dickinson is widely considered to be one of the two leading 19th-century American poets.
Poem: (I ’M nobody! Who are you?):
I ’M nobody! Who are you?
Are you nobody, too?
Then there ’s a pair of us—don’t tell!
They ’d banish us, you know.
How dreary to be somebody!
How public, like a frog
To tell your name the livelong day
To an admiring bog!
Problematization of the poem:
1)Nobody - You can't be 'nobody' if you are a living human being.
Resolve: The speaker in this poem is not specified, but identifies themselves as 'Nobody', which means being private and humble. Poet is talking about a person who avoided the public eye and has an importance of privacy. It also suggests the importance of knowing how to be alone, and to find self worth that isn’t dependent on external approval.
2)Words like 'They' and 'Somebody' - It is not clear for whom these words are used.
Resolve: In the poem 'Somebody' and 'They' means those who live boring lives in search of attention and admiration. people whose lives are governed by garnering attention and being liked.
3)To be somebody like a frog - Here the poet compared somebody with a frog but it is not clear who are somebodies? and why are they like frogs?
Resolve: In the poem, the speaker compares being a 'Somebody' to being like a frog. This frog is a 'public' creature, which refers to the fact that frogs announce their presence via loud croaks, while all the other frogs around them do the same thing. This comparison suggests that 'Somebodies', too, like to talk about themselves all the 'livelong' day to other 'Somebodies'. The frog here represents how vacuous and, frankly, annoying this tendency can be.
4)Admiring bog - A 'bog' isn't exactly a nice place, it is a smelly and swampy place, though it is used with the word 'admiring'.
Resolve: Through this metaphor the poet wants to say that bog makes being surrounded by 'Somebodies' seem like a less than pleasant experience.
Analysis of the poem:
(This response is taken with the help of ChatGPT and the prompt is 'Generate an analysis of the poem 'I'm nobody! Who are you?' by Emily Dickinson.)
In this poem, at a very first stanza the poet introduces herself as 'Nobody' and asks the person she's addressing if they are nobody, too. The use of the word 'Nobody' might seem paradoxical at first, since it is commonly associated with insignificance and a lack of status. However, the speaker's declaration of being 'Nobody' is not a statement of self-depreciation, but rather a declaration of independence from the constraints of society and the pressures of fame. 'Nobody' means being private and humble. Poet is talking about a person who avoided the public eye and has an importance of privacy.
Then the poet expresses excitement at the possibility that they have found someone else who is also 'Nobody'. They see this as creating a special bond between them. She also warns the person they are addressing not to reveal their status as 'Nobody', as it may lead to unwanted attention or recognition from others by saying "They ’d banish us, you know".
In the second stanza, the poet used the word 'Somebody', which means those who live boring lives in search of attention and admiration. people whose lives are governed by garnering attention and being liked. Here, the Poet reflects on the negative aspects of being someone who is well-known and recognized by society. They see it as dreary and unappealing. She compares being 'Somebody' to being like a frog, which is often seen and heard, but not necessarily appreciated or valued. The poet concludes the comparison, saying that being somebody is like being admired by a bog, she imagines the 'Somebody' being like a frog, who is admired by a bog, which is a wetland area. This reinforces the idea that being well-known may not necessarily bring true fulfillment or happiness.
Conclusion:
In conclusion, the speaker of the poem is happy to be a nobody and finds the idea of being somebody unappealing. The poem reflects Dickinson's introspective nature and her preference for solitude and anonymity.
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