Emily Dickinson

Background

Emily Dickinson was born in Amherst, Massachusetts, U.S., to an upper-middle-class but prominent family. Her father’s name was Edward Dickinson. He was Amherst College’s trustee and trusted, and worked as a lawyer. He also served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives and in its senate. Her paternal grandfather was Samuel Dickinson, who was one of the founding members of the college. Dickinson’s mother was Emily Norcross. The poet has two siblings: an older brother named William Austin and a younger sister, Lavinia Norcross.

Growing up, Dickinson was loved as she was a very well-behaved kid. She had an inclination toward music and was particularly skilled at playing the piano. She completed her primary education at a local school on Pleasant Street. Her father always followed her progress at school, even when away on business trips. However, the poet’s later correspondences indicate that she felt her mother was aloof and cold. In 1840, she was enrolled at Amherst Academy, where she spent seven years studying botany, history, Latin, English, geology, arithmetic, classical literature, and philosophy.

From a young age, she was troubled by death’s “deepening menace,” especially the demise of the people she loved. The poet was especially traumatized when her cousin passed away in 1844. In 1845, she found peace and solace when a religious revival occurred in Amherst. However, death became a recurring theme in her poetry. In 1847, she attended the Mount Holyoke Female Seminary and studied there for 10 months. The reason for her dropping out is unknown, with some sources suggesting that her father wanted Dickinson to stay at home. In the 1850s, melancholic at her home, she began penning down poems and letters, which she shared with friends and confidants. She suffered a stroke and died on June 16, 1874.