Review of “No Ladder Needs the Bird but Skies” (1883)
Emily Dickinson (writer).
Read in 2021.
I’ve done no research on the matter, but this poem was sent to a friend (Maria Whitney), unlike “Those — Dying Then” (1882), which was sent to no-one. Here, Dickinson puts up a Christian front, but seems to undermine it, asserting that the birds need no tools (like a bible) or leaders (like a priest or god) before naming Jesus anyway.