Heart, we will forget him, You and I, tonight! You must forget the warmth he gave, I will forget the light.
Emily DickinsonRead
After great pain, a formal feeling comes — The Nerves sit ceremonious, like Tombs — The stiff Heart questions was it He, that bore, And Yesterday, or Centuries before? The Feet, mechanical, go round — Of Ground, or Air, or Ought — A Wooden way Regardless grown, A Quartz contentment, like a stone — This is the Hour of Lead — Remembered, if outlived, As Freezing persons, recollect the Snow — First — Chill — then Stupor — then the letting go —
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects the emotional numbness and the mechanical response to pain after suffering.
Emily Dickinson's quote captures the profound sense of emptiness and detachment that often follows significant emotional or physical pain. It illustrates how individuals may feel 'ceremonious' yet numb, akin to inanimate objects, as they navigate their way through the aftermath of distress. The reference to a 'stiff Heart' questions the reality of pain, suggesting that the experience can feel both immediate and timeless. Ultimately, it portrays the stages of coping with loss, from initial chill and stupor to the eventual process of letting go, akin to the way we remember profound coldness long after it has passed.
Themes
PainNumbnessEmotionsSufferingLetting GoLossHealingCoping
In practice
Example use cases
During a discussion on mental health, this quote could emphasize the recovery journey.
More from Emily Dickinson
All quotes →I held a jewel in my fingers And went to sleep. The day was warm, and winds were prosy; I said: "'T will keep." I woke and chid my honest fingers,— The gem was gone; And now an amethyst remembrance Is all I own.
Emily DickinsonRead
I'll tell you how the sun rose, a ribbon at a time. The steeples swam in amethyst, The news like squirrels ran. The hills untied their bonnets, The bobolinks begun. Then I said softly to myself, "That must have been the sun!
Emily DickinsonRead
My best Acquaintances are those With Whom I spoke no Word
Emily DickinsonRead
This is the Hour of Lead- Remembered, if outlived, As freezing persons, recollect the Snow- First-Chill-then Stupor- then the letting go---
Emily DickinsonRead
Luck is not chance, it's toil; fortune's expensive smile is earned.
Emily DickinsonRead
Similar quotes
You have left me so long to struggle against death, alone, that I feel and see only death! I feel like death!
Emily BronteRead
I think it's like a relay race. You run, and you hand over the baton, and your kids pick it up. They take the stuff they want, throw the rest away, and keep running. That's what life is about.
Billy CrystalRead
Life is too short to worry about what others say about you. Have fun and give them something to talk about.
Kevin HartRead
Life is obstinate and clings closest where it is most hated.
Mary Wollstonecraft ShelleyRead
Olive's private view is that life depends on what she thinks of as "big bursts" and "little bursts." Big bursts are things like marriage or children, intimacies that keep you afloat, but these big bursts hold dangerous, unseen currents. Which is why you need the little bursts as well: a friendly clerk at Bradlee's, let's say, or the waitress at Dunkin' Donuts who knows how you like your coffee. Tricky business, really.
Elizabeth StroutRead
The first ghost to leave the world of the dead was Roger. He took a step forward, and turned to look back at Lyra, and laughed in surprise as he found himself turning into the night, the starlight, the air. . .and then he was gone, leaving behind such a vivid little burst of happiness.
Philip PullmanRead