"I like a look of Agony,
Because I know it's true -
Men do not sham Convulsion,
Nor simulate, a Throe - "

"Dickinson often writes aphoristically, meaning that she compresses a great deal of meaning into a very small number of words. This can make her poems hard to understand on a first reading, but when their meaning does unveil itself, it often explodes in the mind all at once, and lines that seemed baffling can become intensely and unforgettably clear."

Dickinson is obviously someone that acknowledges her appreciation for honesty. She can enjoy something or at least respect it if it is not hiding anything. If you are not hiding anything, you are revealing yourself to everyone which takes confidence and courage. At the same time you can’t be totally open about everything to anyone or you could be putting yourself in danger. Or you could be thought of as weird which can be a pretty bad place to be in if you don’t play your cards right. I have already conjured up some respect for Dickinson because she can look past the harshness or ugliness of a person or situation. That takes intelligence and maturity. To be able to enjoy something just because it is transparent takes wisdom. As we get older we realize how easy it is to be tricked and how often people try to trick you. This gives us more admiration for things that are clear and straight forward. It saves time and frustration when we don’t have to figure something out. I especially dislike things that are made complicated or unclear just for the sake of distracting us from the facts.

I am fairly positive that Dickinson doesn’t enjoy watching anyone in agony. I don’t think anyone does unless they’re crazy or the person in pain really deserved it. I like that she goes to the extreme to make her point known. After reading the first line I was a little confused and maybe even a little shocked. I also thought she might just be being sarcastic for the poem, which she kind of is. In the second line you get a sense of relief because she justifies why she said she likes the look of agony. I can relate to her appreciation of truth. In my experience, in order to appreciate truth you must first experience the pain of being lied to. What first comes to mind is when the police tell you that you won’t get in any trouble as long as you’re honest. Then you give an incriminating statement and of course you’re immediately treated as the scum of the earth.

The reason Dickinson uses states of torture to show truth is because that’s when people are least concerned with their appearance. Whether they are conscious of it or not people are always concerned about the way they look to a certain degree (except when they’re sleeping or knocked out). Only in extreme circumstances do people become utterly careless of their appearance and one of them is enduring agony. People are so overwhelmed by their instincts that their emphasis on looks is non-existent.

"SparkNotes: Dickinson’s Poetry: Analysis." SparkNotes: Today's Most Popular Study Guides. Web. 15 Mar. 2011. <http://www.sparknotes.com/poetry/dickinson/analysis.html>.