Her Divine Majority

The idea of a poet’s vocation can be defined as a poet’s calling, or a purpose. Retrospectively, male poets have been granted the privilege of choice, and their position in patriarchal society has allowed them to pursue any purpose they desire. Women, however, were taught that their purpose in life is to submit to their husbands and face the reality of motherhood. Consequently, this lack of choice enabled men to portray themselves as the standard bearer of society, further enforcing female subordination. However, Emily Dickinson repurposed her life as a female poet. To Dickinson, resisting male authority through her creative dexterity is her poetic vocation. Considered an existentialist avant la lettre, her poetry interpolates early feminist existentialist thought in the sense of searching for one’s purpose authentically while objecting to societal values. To search for this purpose, Dickinson withdraws herself from the pressures of society and into the interior of her mind. By doing this, she exercises creative liberty and as a woman is given a choice to assert her authority without the consequences of patriarchal objectification. Thus, in relation to finding her purpose, Emily Dickinson’s resistance to all authority is her asserting her female artistry in a male dominated field, to which I believe is her poetic vocation. 

Writing in the position of a female poet was Dickinson’s purpose on earth which explains how often she highlights this theme in her poetry. Additionally, this idea is reinforced by her atypical style of poetry to which she uses to distance herself from contemporary poetic standards that have been enforced by men. In this paper, I will first examine Dickinson's The Soul selects her own Society where she shuts out the male perspective to reflect how her withdrawal from patriarchal society allowed her to have a choice and insert herself into the poetic world on her own terms. I will then consider how Dickinson's atypical style of poetry reinforces the idea of her finding her purpose to showcase how her act of creating unconventional poetry stands as an objection to not only male authority but to all who command it from her. In doing this, I will demonstrate how Emily Dickinson’s defiance to submit to authority of any kind encapsulates her ideas on the female poet’s mission and provides a gateway to female liberation. Finally, I argue that Dickinson interprets the poet’s vocation as a search for existential authenticity, and as an unconventional female poet, she marks her presence in the world through indifference.

The poem celebrates female individualism, and the power Dickinson has when choosing her own path in life despite societal expectations. As a result, she can share the same male privilege of choice, to which she uses to advance her agency as a female poet. By excluding the male perspective in her poem, Dickinson can have control over her artistic expression and her place within society. From the title alone, Dickinson expresses the virtues of solitude when she addresses the soul’s ability to “select her own society -” (Line 1). By personifying the soul as a selective female entity, Dickinson creates counteraction to male energy and emphasizes the active nature of the feminine soul’s choice, suggesting intentionality. This allows her to highlight the power of the soul to make its own choices and support her creative autonomy as a female artist regardless of male artistic superiority. Because Dickinson establishes this notion, she can differentiate herself amongst the masses in order to create a private space for the soul to exercise such liberty. This is shown after having selected her own society, she then suggests to “shut the door to her divine Majority” (lines 2-3). The door not only implies a sense of protection by choice, but it is also reflective of Dickinson’s reclusive existence to which she rejected the constraints of the physical world. Although identifying the “divine majority” (line 3) is unclear, one can suggest that Dickinson rejects all authority, including religion, to emphasize the superiority of the soul. Therefore, she displays the idea that the soul is in control of her own destiny and can exert her will amongst a mass of male poetry.

Throughout the poem, Dickinson portrays her vocation as a desire to express her creativity truthfully. Considering this, Dickinson stresses on the importance of male exclusion as the key to simon-pure artistic expression because having the choice to do so presents her as a woman who can go above male authority. In the second stanza, Dickinson displays the soul’s act of choice by prohibiting all male companionship that attempt to sway her. After having shut the door, Dickinson remains “unmoved” as she notes the Chariots - pausing - at her low Gate” (line 5-6). Here, the portrayal of the soul is emotionless and even unchanged by the arrival of the chariots. One can suggest that the soul is void of distractions of the world. Additionally, ‘low gate’ implies a sense of humility, which is reinforced through her affirmation of indifference within society. Repeatedly, the soul is presented with other company as Dickinson remains “unmoved” by “- an Emperor kneeling Opon her Mat” (lines 7-8). The repetition of ‘unmoved’, supported by Dickinson’s use of dashes, creates a sense of finality. Dickinson’s implementation of dashes allows the reader to reflect on the speaker’s decision to shut out male companionship and to process that even figures of grandeur cannot penetrate the humble barricades of her soul and her chosen company. Therefore, Dickinson cements the idea of female choice and emphasizes her poetic purpose to create art that’s authentic to herself without the impediments of patriarchal society.

Although Dickinson was often reclusive in her life, she does not portray the soul as isolated in this poem. In fact, she motivates the soul to permit access to those it wishes to invite into its realm. Dickinson employs an authoritative tone as she’s “known [the soul]” to which she demands it to “Choose One - [...] from an ample nation -” (lines 9-10). By doing this, Dickinson further develops the theme of the soul’s selectivity in choosing its companion, enabling the reader to carefully contemplate who meets the standards of the soul. The use of ‘ample nation’ suggests that the soul has many potential companions to choose from, but it still chooses only one; further emphasizing the soul’s strict criteria for company. Dickinson’s use of an authoritative tone demonstrates the possibility for women to demand a world for themselves - a world where they are not limited by societal standards. In the final lines of the poem, Dickinson tells the reader to “close the Valves of her attention - like Stone -” (lines 11-12). Here, Dickinson conveys the finality of the soul’s decision once it has selected a companion. The metaphor of the “valves” closing like stone suggests that the soul opens/closes in a one-way direction and its entry is somewhat rigid and unmovable. This suggests a sense of control and deliberate choice on behalf of the soul in deciding what to allow into her attention. This also echoes the opening line of the poem which highlights the theme of the soul’s autonomy and selectivity in choosing (its companions). Thus, the poem itself stands as a metaphor for Dickinson’s own poetic vocation, in which she chooses to associate only with those who appreciate her creative mind and rejects the expectations and demands of society at large.

In conclusion, Emily Dickinson redefined the idea of a poet’s vocation through her refusal to accept patriarchal authority. Through her unconventional poetry, she sought existential authenticity and created space for herself as a female poet. By rejecting the male perspective, Dickinson stresses on the importance of artistic expression through the choice of exclusion. She is resolute in shutting out all distractions and adamantly opposed systematic thinking. Her poem serves as a feminist critique on the societal standards imposed on women. Ultimately, Emily Dickinson’s poetry serves as a commentary on the subjective nature of perception in a society that marginalized her for being a woman, where readers failed to understand her writing, and language structures were created to restrict and exclude her. Nevertheless, Dickinson found purpose in poetry, and as a female writer, her work serves as a reminder of the virtues of solitary in pursuit to one's own goal.