Abstract

Emily Dickinson, a miraculous and beautiful flower in the poetry garden of American literature history, wrote altogether 1,775 poems, most of which are nature poems being various in forms. Nature has not only purified Dickinson’s heart, but also became the fountain of her poetry creation. She explored the essence of life from nature and wrote pure and simple nature poems, which depict natural phenomena, changes of seasons, heavenly bodies, animals like birds, insects, as well as flowers of various kinds. Through unceasing observation of natural phenomena, Dickinson gained a reflection of the true meaning of life and conveyed it to the readers through her nature poems which inspire and enlighten us deeply.
This thesis aims to provide a detailed analysis of three of Dickinson’s nature poems by probing into certain natural images frequently used by the poetess and the philosophy of life being reflected. This paper consists of 5 chapters. The first chapter introduces Emily Dickinson and her nature poems and summarizes the relevant studies home and abroad. The second chapter analyzes specifically three representative poems by Emily Dickinson on the basis of the general significance of Dickinson’s nature poems. The third chapter is a general study about ordinary natural images created by Dickinson and the essence of life as reflected in her poems. The fourth chapter is about the practical significance of this issue, i.e. its effects on modern poetry creation. Finally, the last chapter focuses on major findings of this study and draws a conclusion of this thesis.
Through the study, we can come to the conclusion that Dickinson’s nature poems generally fall into three categories: Philosophical poems which reveal the profound mystery in the universe and of life; Poems which describe natural scenery; Poems which depict animals, plants and nature. From those wonderful poems, the poetess expresses a unique essence of life, and the frequent themes of her philosophy of life are “death”, “immortality”，“love”，“friendship” and “natural beauty”. The style of Dickinson’s verses has the distinguishing feature of aphorism: terse and powerful, sparkling with wit; the imagination is fantastic and bold, and the idea is incisive; however, there is no lack of humor. The images created by Dickinson are usually unitary, yet they are bright, pure, free and living. Both the unique content and form of Dickinson’s poems possess a guiding and reference meaning for the research of the consistent images and ideas in Dickinson’s poems; it also serves as a reference for the creation and innovation of modern poetry.

Key Words: Emily Dickinson, essence of life, poems of nature, nature images

摘要

艾米莉•狄金森是美国文学史上的一朵奇葩，她终其一生在独处幽思中度过。狄金森现存的诗有1775首，其中有大量的自然诗歌，且形式多样。自然不仅净化了诗人的心灵，而且成了她创作的源泉。她从中感悟人生，写下了质朴清新的自然诗篇。这些诗歌描写了各种自然现象、四季的更迭、神圣的身体、动物如鸟儿和昆虫以及各种各样的花卉。狄金森正是不断观察自然，从自然意象中感悟生命的真谛，并通过自己的一首首自然诗表现出来，带给读者深深的启迪。
本课题意通过狄金森的诗歌，尤其是分析其特定的三首自然诗，从中探讨出诗人惯用的自然意象以及其表现出的生命感悟。论文分为五个章节。第一章为绪论，主要是简单介绍艾米莉•狄金森及其自然诗歌，并概括本课题的国内外研究现状。第二章选取狄金森具有代表意义的三首自然诗，并以狄金森自然诗歌的普遍意义为基础对这三首诗的意象及人生感悟进行具体分析。第三章是诗人自然诗歌中出现的常见意象及狄金森经常表达的人生感悟的一个普遍研究。第四章为本课题的实际意义，即狄金森自然诗歌对现代诗歌创作的借鉴意义。最后一章是对课题进行总结，即论题和结论。
通过研究，我们可以发现，一般来说，狄金森的自然诗歌集中于以下三个方面：1. 反映宇宙以及生命奥秘的哲理性诗歌；2. 描绘自然景观的诗歌；3. 描写动植物的与自然有关的诗歌。通过这些令人赞叹的诗歌，女诗人表达出一种独特的人生感悟。狄金森经常表达关于“死亡”、“永生”、“爱”、“友谊”、和“自然美”这些主题的生命哲理。其诗句形式如格言，简洁有力，充满机智，想象奇特大胆，思想深刻又不乏幽默。其意象往往单一，但却鲜明清新，自由而灵动。迪金森诗歌独特的内容和形式对研究诗人诗歌中惯有的意象和思想有着指导和参考意义，这也将对现代诗歌的写作和创新有着借鉴意义。

关键词：艾米莉•狄金森；生命感悟；自然诗歌；自然意象