'Hope is the Thing with Feathers Themes'. Next Section Quotes and Analysis Previous Section Glossary Buy Study Guide How To Cite in MLA Format Melendez, John.

Seafaring is often used culturally as a symbol for hardship and endurance, which is noted in the poem's descriptions of storms and gales. The use of seafaring imagery is also significant in Dickinson's depiction of human suffering. I've heard it in the chillest land, And on the strangest sea Yet, never, in extremity, It asked a crumb of me. This weather represents the hardships humans face, such as loss and grief. In this poem, Dickinson expresses her awareness of the immense dignity and importance of human soul, involved in the adventure of life. Hope is the thing with feathers That perches in the soul, And sings the tune without the words, And never stops at all, And sweetest in the gale is heard And sore must be the storm That could abash the little bird That kept so many warm. This optimism is subtly implied by the bird's song being described as 'sweetest' in a dramatic 'gale.' Human sufferingĭickinson refers repeatedly to the inhospitable nature of the dark and stormy weather in the poem's setting. The speaker appears optimistic about the human ability to hope and survive through suffering. Human endurance is a significant aspect of the poem and is symbolized by the strong little bird, who sings and endures extreme weather conditions. Emily Dickinson’s Hope is the thing with feathers is a short ballad about hope and its role in human life.

The poem concludes on a softly optimistic note, maintaining that hope is a force to be reckoned with, still singing in the face of adversity.

Dickinson uses the features and characteristics of a bird to illustrate her opinions about human hope in times of hardship. Designed as a follow-up to the award-winning CLASSICAL BABY (Im Grown Up Now): THE POETRY SHOW, this new show mixes interviews with kids and animated versions of great poems. Hope is depicted as a little bird that continues to sing even in face of trouble and pain. A CHILDS GARDEN OF POETRY is HBOs second collaboration with the Poetry Foundation. Hope is the main theme of the poem and is the subject of its central metaphor.

Hope is the thing with feathers poem