Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Much Madness is Divinist Sense: Paradox

This poem by Emily Dickinson seems to be one big paradox. I think I'm on the right track to understanding this poem. The first line states "Much madness is divinest Sense." How could madness be supreme reason? In reverse order, the speaker states that "much sense [is] the starkest Madness." The speaker, through the paradox, conveys the theme that those who sometimes are thought of as logical and belonging to the majority are the ones who are insane. The speaker illuminates that the majority of humanity is insane for "handling with a chain" all those who do not think the same way as them. The speaker, through the paradoxes, conveys that those who aren't open minded and refuse to consider other ideas other than their own are the one's who are insane rather than logical.

No comments:

Post a Comment