Dreams

“October’s Bright Blue Weather” by Helen Hunt Jackson (1872)

This poem, set in the gloomy season of autumn, is an important companion piece to “Dreams.” Its lavish, romantic reverie about the striking beauty of the world in the fall balances the gloom and gothic sorrows of “Dreams.” In celebrating the gaudy splendor of an October afternoon, Jackson reveals her fondness for the world despite her private agonies.

“We dream—It is good we are dreaming” by Emily Dickinson (1863)

Closely associated with Jackson because of their long friendship and involved correspondence, Dickinson here weighs in on the power of dreams to provide respite from the harrowing realities of everyday living. A comparison of the two poems might discuss Dickinson’s highly idiosyncratic and eccentric prosody against Jackson’s more conventional form.

“Threnody” by Ralph Waldo Emerson (1847)

Jackson studied Emerson’s complex transcendental philosophy. An iconic figure in 19th-century American literature, Emerson praised Jackson’s poetry in reviews. Here, Emerson, grounded in the same Unitarian faith as Jackson, explores his grief after the death of his young son. Without evoking the Christian afterlife, Emerson agrees with Jackson on the feelings of vulnerability and deep sorrow inflicted by death.