Journal #41

I read Emily Dickinson's poem "A Word is Dead" The poem says simply this:

"A word is dead
When it is said,
Some say.
I say it just
Begins to live
That day."

I think that she is trying to say a number of things. She is trying to say that while some people think that words do not last any longer than the length of time is takes to say them. They think that words are dead things that can not mean anything and can not make a lasting impression on anyone. Dickinson, on the other hand, completely disagrees. She thinks that words can last for a long time. She thinks that words can last forever, and that can definitely make a lasting impact on a lot of people. She says that words, such as those used in speeches or famous letters, can make people do a number of things, and they can also make people believe a number of things, whether or not they are true. Words are very powerful, which Emily Dickinson knew very well. She understood their importance, and she saw them as living things that last forever, no matter what anyone else around her thought. She knew that words could make a huge impact, no matter how small the word is, because of people's interpretations of the word and the situation. Words could also mean a number of other things, because they could be interchanged with quite a few things that other people do not consider important, but she believes to be so. They could be synonymous with things such as plants or animals, which Dickinson spent much of her time studying and writing about. She could see the power and importance in every situation, while many people could not, because they did not spend as much of their time sitting out studying nature and the things that are in it. Dickinson saw quite a few things that other people did not, and she saw the good, beauty, and importance in every situation.