Emily Dickinson`s “I’m Nobody! Who are you?”

An opinion essay by Wendy Zhou Shiyuan

When we look back at the poems written hundreds of years ago, it is hard to relate to or find the more profound level the writer wanted to express. Emily Dickinson's poem “I'm Nobody” was one of the famous poems from the 19th century, which, instead of complicated collocations, employs a children's song. But what exactly is the poem trying to convey in simple words?

If we look at the poem’s second stanza, it shows the poetess didn't want to be ‘Somebody,’ or we could say that she was questioning the value of being famous. The reason for this is that Emily used the noisy frogs to describe what ‘somebodies’ are like when they were speaking; she also used swamp to express how boring the people admiring ‘Somebodies’ are.

On the other hand, when we think of gender inequality in the 19th century, we can see a different meaning. When Emily put ‘I'm Nobody’ at the poem’s beginning, she implied that as a woman then, her status was like ‘Nobody’ compared to men. Moreover, she wrote, ‘Don't tell! They'd advertise – you know!’ to tell us that there might be risks of being famous as a woman, which is probably why she would rather be a ‘Nobody.’

Another point worth mentioning is that the two stanzas could describe the same person. We can see the first stanza as the inner or private side of a celebrity, which they carefully avoid the crowd, looking for the same ‘Nobodies’ in their own lives. On top of that, the second stanza could express what a famous ‘Somebody’ thinks in public because being a ‘Somebody’ could be like walking on eggshells, their every move being watched. But they wouldn't give up their hard-earned fame, so they kept a worthless way of living.

All things considered, I would say Emily Dickinson's poem “I'm Nobody” had deep reflections about fame, gender roles, and the double sides of a person. It may contain more significance that modern people will not understand, so people should combine the writers’ position and try harder to think out of the box.

The American poetess Emily Dickinson (Photo by Mondadori Portfolio via Getty Images)