Dichotomy And Contradiction In Emily Dickinson's Poetry

The idea that science is capable of explaining everything in life is rejected here as she says that this world is not the end of the line, that there is something after it that we cannot see. It is “invisible, as music”, meaning something that we cannot physically see, but is always there, something that is noticeable and recognizable to those who care for it. The recognition of this invisible afterlife represents a train of thought that someone who had rejected all forms of spirituality would not follow, indicating that Dickinson’s doubt had not led to her disbelief in a higher power.

Despite this, Dickinson, in the dichotomy and contradiction that seemed to represent her neverending consideration of the world around her, also recognized the helpful role of increasing scientific discoveries: Faith is a fine invention

(Dickinson, 36, LVI).

In an unsubtle way, Dickinson is suggesting that she appreciates that science offers a concrete solution to the problems of the world in a way that faith alone cannot guarantee. In particular, the reference to “an emergency” seems to point to the use of new medical theories and the technology that they require, appropriate for a woman who considered, and perhaps feared, the life after death. The poem is short and simple and, unlike so many of her other poems, relatively easy to decipher, leaving her reader to wonder if perhaps there was some hidden meaning in it that requires more thought. What is interesting is the beginning of her poem, because it is here that she mentions faith. However, instead of really letting us consider her own faith, she uses the word here in an almost facetious way, as if to distract from the fact that she was struggling with her own faith in her daily life. “Faith is a fine invention / for gentlemen who see” is an intriguing glimpse into a woman who, although she denied the organized, dogmatic religion that she was born to, never wavered in her desire to understand the concept of a