Emily Dickinson: "Hope" is the thing with feathers
“Hope” is the thing with feathers
“Hope” is the thing with feathers -
That perches in the soul -
And sings the tune without the words -
And never stops - at all -
And sweetest - in the Gale - is heard -
And sore must be the storm -
That could abash the little Bird
That kept so many warm -
I’ve heard it in the chillest land -
And on the strangest Sea -
Yet - never - in Extremity,
It asked a crumb - of me.
Discussion Questions
What strikes you about Emily’s Dickinson’s representation of hope?
Dickinson’s hope “never - in Extremity” asks a “crumb” of her. How do you interpret these lines, and do they reflect your own conception of hope?
How does Centolella’s hope contrast with Dickinson’s?
What do these poems reveal about how we find and maintain hope through difficult times?
Reflections from #MedHumChat
“On a second read I really like the lines "And sore must be the storm/That could abash the little bird." Reminds us that extinguishing hope is a tragedy with real consequences, and shows us how protective hope really can be”—@preranachatty
“Dickinson’s hope faces every extremity without need: it asks for neither food nor tenderness but can weather and sing through every storm. I aspire to this kind of hope but find, especially these days, that it takes every effort to sustain. My hope needs food.”—@anoushkaasinha
“I agree that fostering hope takes a lot of emotional energy, especially now. But perhaps this poem can teach us to try to let go, to take hope as a given and see what happens if we let it in?”—@HannaSaltzman
“Is there maybe something almost whimsical--the feathers, the perching, the crumb--to suggest that hope comes and sustains you not according to any logic that you can plan--or necessarily sustain--especially in extremity”—@PerriKlass
About this #MedHumChat
“‘Hope’ is the thing with feathers” was paired with the poem “The Hope I Know” by Thomas Centolella for a #MedHumChat discussion on May 6, 2020 exploring Maintaining Hope.
The pieces for this chat as well as the accompanying discussion questions were curated by Anoushka Sinha, MD (@anoushkaasinha).
We were honored that Perri Klass, MD (@PerriKlass) could join as a special guest for this discussion. Perri Klass, MD is a pediatrician who writes fiction and non-fiction covering a range of topics including children and families, medicine, food and travel, and knitting.
About the Author
Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) was an American poet whose first volume of poems was not published until four years after her death, at which time it was met with stunning success. She is well-known for the originality of her poetic style.