The SADness in the Poetry of Emily Dickinson

In 2001, the American Journal of Psychiatry published a case study performed by John F. McDermott titled "Emily Dickinson Revisited: A Study of Periodicity in Her Work." In his study, McDermott asserts that Dickinson did not simply suffer from clinical depression; rather, he argues that she suffered from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). SAD is a special case of clinical depression in which the afflicted suffers their greatest bouts of depression during the winter months when the days shorten and nights lengthen, typically from the onset of fall to the onset of spring. As proof toward his theory, McDermott consulted research that dated each of Dickinson's over 1800 poems by year, season, and month. He then focused specifically on a four-year period when Dickinson was the most productive in her poetry writing, from 1858 to 1861, and classified the number of poems written in each year by the season in which they were written. His results were very conclusive that Dickinson suffered from SAD (McDermott 686-687).

In the century since her death, Dickinson scholars have consistently attempted to name the mental disorder which afflicted her so deeply in the latter part of her life. Some of the disorders that have been attributed to her include anorexia, bipolarism, agoraphobia, and schizotypy, as well as basic clinical depression (Emily). However, after seeing the overwhelming results of McDermott's study, it seems that SAD is very likely the cause of her mental anguish. Considering the results of McDermott's case study, it becomes increasingly interesting when comparing his theory with Dickinson's poetry. In this paper, I plan to examine three of Dickinson's poems -- "There's a certain Slant of light," "I taste a liquor never brewed," and "Apparently with no surprise" -- in order to further assert McDermott's theory that Emily Dickinson suffered from Seasonal Affective Disorder.

In "There's a certain Slant of light," Dickinson's opening stanza states,

There's a certain Slant of light,

Winter Afternoons--

That oppresses, like the Heft

Of Cathedral Tunes--

It's important to note the capitalized words in this stanza, as the capitalization is significant of the emphasis that Dickinson is placing on these images. First, Dickinson capitalizes "Slant" but not light. Capitalizing one but not the other is interesting due to the connotations of the two words. "Slant" is symbolic of a sort of distortion where as "light" is symbolic of illumination. The capitalization of "Slant" allows the reader to acknowledge the emphasis of the distortion associated with this "Slant of light." She attributes this "Slant" to "Winter Afternoons," another emphasized image. It can then be inferred that these two opening lines are referring to a distortion caused by winter afternoons. Dickinson goes on to state that this distortion is oppressive -- an almost outright insinuation that the distortion is an overwhelming influence -- and compares it to "the Heft/ Of Cathedral Tunes." Cathedral tunes, another emphasized image, carry a heavy connotation of their own. Cathedral tunes, in contrast to gospel music, are slow, low-toned, and heavy, as Dickinson states herself. Cathedral tunes are rarely played on a celebratory occasion; rather, they are generally somber (Dickinson 175).

This opening stanza is interesting when considering McDermott's theory. Dickinson is writing about a distortion caused by winter afternoons that causes an oppressive feeling of somberness. Moving into the second stanza, Dickinson writes

Heavenly Hurt, it gives us--

We can find no scar,

But internal difference,

Where the Meanings, are--

This oppression she names "Heavenly Hurt" is not a physical ailment: "We can find no scar." Rather, it affects on an emotional level: "internal difference." In the third stanza, she moves on to call this affliction "the Seal Despair.../ Sent us of the Air." So, this distortion caused by winter afternoons is not only an emotional distortion, it is in itself a form of disparity. Furthermore, it is caused simply by the "Air" (Dickinson 175).

When comparing the above interpretation to the definition of SAD, it seems that Dickinson is writing very coherently about the effects of the disorder. Persons suffering from SAD experience an overwhelming depression during the months when the sunlight hours are shortened. Dickinson is essentially writing about the same phenomenon -- an emotional despair caused by winter afternoons.

In stark contrast to the somber tone of "There's a certain Slant of light" is the uplifting, almost playful tone of another of Dickinson's poems, "I taste a liquor never brewed." "There's a certain Slant of light" speaks of "Winter Afternoons," where as "I taste a liquor never brewed" speaks of "endless summer days." Where the "Air" in "There's a certain Slant of light" causes a "Seal Despair," The "Air" in "I taste a liquor never brewed" causes inebriation. This inebriation, however, is caused by "a liquor never brewed," a statement that is symbolic of a high that is caused by the season of summer alone rather than some foreign substance (Dickinson 175, 173).

In the third stanza of "I taste a liquor never brewed," Dickinson writes

When "Landlords" turn the drunken Bee

Out of the Foxglove's door--

When Butterflies--renounce their "drams"--

I shall but drink the more!

This stanza can be seen as symbolic toward the uplift in emotion that Dickinson feels during these "endless summer days." She continues to indulge on the high that she gets from the air even after the bees and butterflies have retired from pollinating flowers. Furthermore, bees and butterflies are symbolic because they appear only during the warmer seasons of spring and summer (Dickinson 173). Considering McDermott's theory that Dickinson was afflicted by SAD, the contrast between these two poems can be shown not only to express the emotional despair felt by persons afflicted by the disease during the winter months, but also to emphasize the almost surreal inebriation felt by those persons during the summer months.

The final poem which I will examine combines elements of both of the above poems in a manner which further promotes McDermott's theory. "Apparently with no surprise" opens with

Apparently with no surprise

To any happy Flower

The Frost beheads it at its play--

In accidental power--

This poem starts off with two striking symbols -- the flower and the frost. The flower is an obvious symbol of the warmer months where the frost is an obvious symbol of the colder months. The flower in the poem is "happy" until the frost accidentally "beheads it at its play." This can be seen as symbolic of the high that Dickinson feels during the summer until the first frost comes and destroys that high. Furthermore, the fact that this occurs "with no surprise" is significant because it symbolizes a recurrence of that destruction (Dickinson 205). The flower is not surprised that the frost destroys it just as Dickinson is not surprised when her elation is destroyed by the onset of fall. This lack of surprise signifies that Dickinson's experiences with despair in the winter and elation in the summer were recurring, an interpretation that further develops McDermott's theory that Dickinson suffered from SAD -- persons who have SAD experience the same symptoms and depression year after year.

In conclusion, I feel that it's important to state that McDermott's argument is solely a theory. As he states himself in the "Conclusion" section of his case study, "Diagnostic impression without examination is conjecture at best" (689). However, in the quest to form theories toward the emotional disorder that plagued Emily Dickinson throughout the latter part of her life, McDermott's theory is an important one to consider. The symptoms of SAD are expressed very coherently in the examined poems, and, if nothing else, offer an interesting and novel approach to interpreting Dickinson's poetry.

Works Cited

McDermott, John F. M.D. "Emily Dickinson Revisited: A Study of Periodicity in Her Work." American Journal of Psychiatry 158.5 (2001). 8 February 2007 .

Dickinson, Emily. "I Taste a Liquor Never Brewed." The Norton Anthology of American Literature. 6^th ed. Ed. Nina Baym. New York/London: W. W. Norton & Company, 2003. 173.

---. "There's a Certain Slant of Light." The Norton Anthology of American Literature. 6^th ed. Ed. Nina Baym. New York/London: W. W. Norton & Company, 2003. 175.

---. "Apparently With No Surprise." The Norton Anthology of American Literature. 6^th ed. Ed. Nina Baym. New York/London: W. W. Norton & Company, 2003. 205.

Emily Dickinson: Poet and Recluse. 2003. Hermitary. 8 February 2007 .