theres a certain slant of light (dickinson)

Question 1

themes

Answer 1

nature of despair
religion and nature
truth and transformation

Question 2

speaker noticed “a certain Slant of light” that appears on “Winter Afternoons”

Question 3

light usually connected with pos things but this “Winter” light “oppresses” the speaker

Question 4

seeing this cold sunlight makes the speaker feel down, unhappy

Question 5

poem explores this mysterious melancholy feelings, that is implied to be an unavoidable part of life

Question 6

first described as heavy, like a weight pressing down on speakers soul. much like the weight when listening to “Catherdral Tunes”

Question 7

going to church may remind people of their temporary place in the world, and are subject to forces beyond their control

Question 8

maybe the despair speaker feels is connected to feeling of helplessness in relation to the rest of the uniferse

Question 9

winter commonly associated with death, speakers despair may be tied to an understanding of the inevitability of death

Question 10

the winter sunlight filtering down to the speaker makes the speaker think abt the fleeting nature of life and this awareness is what causes the speaker to feel pained and trapped

Question 11

this “Slant of light” brings “Heavenly Hurt” this seems like an oxymoron as heavenly things are supposed to be pleasant not hurt

Question 12

may suggest that if god gave life to humans he also created sense of despair because with life comes death

Question 13

this despair can be thought as a mix of joy and fear, greatfulness and pain

Question 14

deeply personal and inescapable nature of this feeling

Question 15

“None may teach it” instead it’s an “imperial affliction” “Sent” to people from “the Air”

Question 16

heaven was often described as an empire during dickinson a lifetime and these lines suggest the “affliction” comes from god or something greater than speaker

Question 17

emphasizes speakers powerlessness in face of despair which like an emperors order can’t be countered

Question 18

use of “us” implies this despair is shared by all of humanity and is just a part of life

Question 19

at same time, it’s only experienced individually suggesting a sense of isolation and loneliness

Question 20

this gives sense of hopelessness to poem; nothing speaker does can temper this despair

Question 21

even landscape can do nothing but “listen” while “Shadows- hold their breath”

Question 22

as if world can only wait for gods will to be done

Question 23

even when despair lifts, it’s compared to the expression in a corpses eyes: just as death is unavoidable, so is any hope of combating this despair

Question 24

capitalizations of “Slant”, “Winter Afternoons”, “Heft”, “Cathedral Tunes”, etc emphasize their significance

Question 25

simile

Answer 25

“heft” and “catherdral tunes”. and these describe how the speaker feels about the “certain Slant of light”

Question 26

rhyme scheme

Answer 26

abcb

Question 27

commas and dashes divide and accentuate info while establishing a particular rhythm

Question 28

oxymoron

Answer 28

“Heavenly Hurt”. the suffering that the speaker depicts is internal as “We can find no scar, but internal difference”

Question 29

imagery

Answer 29

natural, like the winter setting or light to express certain internal struggles

Question 30

conflict of speaker appears to be in the “internal difference-/Where the Meanings are-“

Question 31

dashes have crucial role as they separate ideas, making them indépendant from the rest, at same time though they act as a connection between these ideas, building a deeper meaning

Question 32

none can teach you about this “Heavenly Hurt” or “internal difference” as they’re impossible to defjne

Question 33

“Any” refers to the subjectivity of the “internal difference” and it’s placed between dashes to emphasize its meaning

Question 34

the subjects turn to be “the seal Despair”, due to the fact they can’t clearly be explained

Question 35

metaphor

Answer 35

“imperial affliction/Sent us of the Air” returns to the idea at beginning, to the “certain Slant of light”. this metaphor sums up all of speakers despair and suffeting

Question 36

nature listens to everything “the Landscape listens -/Shadows - hold their breath-“ similar to first stanza where nature is still and mysterious

Question 37

personification

Answer 37

of nature and it mediates the internal struggles of the speaker with the external world

Question 38

when light disappears “When it goes” it’s similar to death “tis like the Didtsnce/On the look of Death”

Question 39

poem ends with dash rather than full stop. emphasizes idea of uncertainty and internal conflicts the poem presents.

Question 40

rather than getting certain answer, reader is given further questions with the last dash