Emily Dickinson and Hymn Culture

Tradition and Experience

Fiction & Literature, Literary Theory & Criticism
Cover of the book Emily Dickinson and Hymn Culture by Victoria N. Morgan, Taylor and Francis
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Victoria N. Morgan ISBN: 9781351940542
Publisher: Taylor and Francis Publication: December 5, 2016
Imprint: Routledge Language: English
Author: Victoria N. Morgan
ISBN: 9781351940542
Publisher: Taylor and Francis
Publication: December 5, 2016
Imprint: Routledge
Language: English

Extending the critical discussion which has focused on the hymns of Isaac Watts as an influence on Emily Dickinson's poetry, this study brings to bear the hymnody of Dickinson's female forbears and contemporaries and considers Isaac Watts's position as a Dissenter for a fuller understanding of Dickinson's engagement with hymn culture. Victoria N. Morgan argues that the emphasis on autonomy in Watts, a quality connected to his position as a Dissenter, and the work of women hymnists, who sought to redefine God in ways more compatible with their own experience, posing a challenge to the hierarchical 'I-Thou' form of address found in traditional hymns, inspired Dickinson's adoption of hymnic forms. As she traces the powerful intersection of tradition and experience in Dickinson's poetry, Morgan shows Dickinson using the modes and motifs of hymn culture to manipulate the space between concept and experience-a space in which Dickinson challenges old ways of thinking and expresses her own innovative ideas on spirituality. Focusing on Dickinson's use of bee imagery and on her notions of religious design, Morgan situates the radical re-visioning of the divine found in Dickinson's 'alternative hymns' in the context of the poet's engagement with a community of hymn writers. In her use of the fluid imagery of flight and community as metaphors for the divine, Dickinson anticipates the ideas of feminist theologians who privilege community over hierarchy.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Extending the critical discussion which has focused on the hymns of Isaac Watts as an influence on Emily Dickinson's poetry, this study brings to bear the hymnody of Dickinson's female forbears and contemporaries and considers Isaac Watts's position as a Dissenter for a fuller understanding of Dickinson's engagement with hymn culture. Victoria N. Morgan argues that the emphasis on autonomy in Watts, a quality connected to his position as a Dissenter, and the work of women hymnists, who sought to redefine God in ways more compatible with their own experience, posing a challenge to the hierarchical 'I-Thou' form of address found in traditional hymns, inspired Dickinson's adoption of hymnic forms. As she traces the powerful intersection of tradition and experience in Dickinson's poetry, Morgan shows Dickinson using the modes and motifs of hymn culture to manipulate the space between concept and experience-a space in which Dickinson challenges old ways of thinking and expresses her own innovative ideas on spirituality. Focusing on Dickinson's use of bee imagery and on her notions of religious design, Morgan situates the radical re-visioning of the divine found in Dickinson's 'alternative hymns' in the context of the poet's engagement with a community of hymn writers. In her use of the fluid imagery of flight and community as metaphors for the divine, Dickinson anticipates the ideas of feminist theologians who privilege community over hierarchy.

More books from Taylor and Francis

Cover of the book The Social Project Manager by Victoria N. Morgan
Cover of the book Skilled Migration, Expectation and Reality by Victoria N. Morgan
Cover of the book The Geography of Names by Victoria N. Morgan
Cover of the book Genders by Victoria N. Morgan
Cover of the book Climate Change and Liberal Priorities by Victoria N. Morgan
Cover of the book Contemporary Water Governance in the Global South by Victoria N. Morgan
Cover of the book Leading and Managing Indigenous Education in the Postcolonial World by Victoria N. Morgan
Cover of the book Pedagogies, Physical Culture, and Visual Methods by Victoria N. Morgan
Cover of the book V. S. Naipaul: Displacement and Autobiography by Victoria N. Morgan
Cover of the book Qualitative Data Analysis by Victoria N. Morgan
Cover of the book EEO Law and Personnel Practices by Victoria N. Morgan
Cover of the book Understanding Differentiation by Victoria N. Morgan
Cover of the book Understanding the Intelligence Cycle by Victoria N. Morgan
Cover of the book Presidential Relations with Congress by Victoria N. Morgan
Cover of the book Discontents by Victoria N. Morgan
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy