Emily Dickenson novel analysis “If you were coming in the fall”

The poets of the nineteenth century wrote on a variety of topics. One often-used topic is that of love. The theme of love has been approached in many different ways. Emily Dickinson is one of the numerous poets who use love as the subject of several of her poems. In “if you were coming in the fall,” Emily Dickinson uses several metaphors to enhance the theme of the time spent waiting for love.

In this poem Emily Dickinson uses metaphor that paints a picture about lost love. It shows that time does not matter when you’re waiting for your love. “If you were coming in the fall, /I’d brush the summer by,” give us the feeling that summer does not matter if she knew that love was coming in the fall. It suggests that if she could forget about the lonely time she spent in summer then she would. The comparison of fall and summer paints a pretty picture, emphasizes that love is beautiful and is worth waiting for.

Emily Dickinson shows that it is not easy to wait for love. “If I could see you in a year, /I’d wind the months in balls,” this creates a picture that the months spent waiting can be crumble up if she knew love was coming in a year. “And put them each in separate drawers, /Until their time falls,” the crumble up balls can be put in different drawers and be forgotten, if she only knew when her love will come. The feeling of crumbling up hurts, but as time pass and as she waits for love, it shall heal slowly.

Although love hurts it is still worth waiting for. “If certain, when this life was out, /That your and mine should be,” this suggest that love still lives on even after death. “But now, all ignorant of the length/Of time’s uncertain wing, /It goads me, like the goblin bee, /That will not state its sting.” This metaphor set a mood of uncertainty of when love is going to come. It hurts waiting for love, but not knowing when love comes hurt even more.

Emily Dickinson uses many metaphors to express the theme. This provides powerful images and makes the theme more visible. Through those images it shows that love is worth waiting for and waiting is worth the love. Emily Dickinson has been able to reveal the theme that love is the controller of human time and energy.