Mason Labash
Journal: Dickinson
March 17, 2011
English 48b

“Tell all the truth but tell it slant –

Success in Circuit lies

Too bright for our infirm Delight

The Truth’s superb surprise

As lightning to the Children eased

With Explanation kind

The Truth must dazzle gradually

Or every man be blind – “

"To make the abstract tangible, to define meaning without confining it, to inhabit a house that never became a prison, Dickinson created in her writing a distinctively elliptical language for expressing what was possible but not yet realized."

I get a little irony from the first line. Dickinson is telling us to tell the whole truth but then she contradicts that by telling us right afterwards that we should tell it slant. I think she could be telling us that it’s okay to exaggerate or that some lies are pretty harmless. She could also be giving us an evil idea because she knows that we’ll know she’s just doing it for the poem, she doesn’t really think it’s okay to lie. In the second line she is saying that lying is what successful people do. Like to be successful in this world, at least from the business perspective, you’re going to have to lie a little bit. The third line and the fourth line are strongly linked together. The good in truth is also like a bright light. Sometimes the truth is so strong that it is too much to handle just like bright light is too strong for our eyes. Our “infirm Delight” is our personalities or morals. We are not delighted when we’re lied to.  The fourth line is the surprise of hearing a revealing truth. It is a “superb” surprise because it makes a huge difference when the truth is known.

Upon reading the fifth line I think of small children watching a lightning storm and being scared. Once they were given an explanation on what it is their nerves are eased. Anyone who doesn’t know what lightning is will most likely be scared of it. The lightning is representative of speed. Lies are often told more quickly than the truth because the liar is nervous and doesn’t want their audience to see any holes in their story. Lying can be scary just like lightning can.  “The truth must dazzle gradually”, meaning the truth is so revealing that it must be told a little bit at a time. It shines a light so bright that it’s blinding. If we knew about everything it would be too much for our little brains. I also think that for us to appreciate the value of truth we must have it told to us slowly. Only then will we realize how important it is and become able to absorb it all.

From this poem I take away the message that we are often afraid of what we don’t understand. Dickinson used electrical terms such as circuit and lightning to describe what a shock the truth can be. She chose the word “circuit” as something that is repeated over and over, like a loop. When you tell a lie, you must continue lying to support your lie or else people may suspect your dishonesty. Soon you’re caught in a big trap, tethered by your lying.

           "Emily Dickinson." The Poetry Foundation : Find Poems and Poets. Discover Poetry. Web. 18 Mar. 2011. <http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/emily-dickinson>.