TOPICS: EMILY DICKINSON: LIFE AND AFTERLIFE in Spring 2024 (CL3910A)

In this course we will explore the work of the American poet Emily Dickinson. Students will engage deeply with the writing Emily Dickinson produced but rarely published during her life as well as the work of contemporary poets and artist who have been influenced by Dickinson’s work have created critical or creative commentaries around Dickinson’s oeuvre. In the first part of the course, we will look at Dickinson’s poems, letters, and biography, along with historical documents and the work of some of Dickinson’s major influences. In the second half of the course, students will look at contemporary works of literature, film, and visual arts inspired by Dickinson’s life and work. Moving away from the stereotypes of the “woman in the attic” and “poet-in-isolation”, we will also explore how Dickinson’s gender, queerness and humour were integral to her work, allowing her to develop a queer syntax that served as an inspiration for the generations that follow.

Throughout the course students will explore several digital museums, archives, and resources—such as a digital tour of her home in Amherst and engagement with her papers and letters in her own handwriting. We will investigate how the social, political, religious, and philosophical atmosphere of the United States in the 19th century shaped Dickinson’s life and work. We will also explore how contemporary new media technologies, from digital archives to streaming services, have helped keep Emily Dickinson’s work alive and accessible to the world.