Analysis
"Heaven"—is what I cannot reach!
The Apple on the Tree-- Provided it do hopeless—hang-- That—"Heaven" is—to Me! The Color, on the Cruising Cloud-- The interdicted Land-- Behind the Hill—the House behind-- There—Paradise—is found! Her teasing Purples—Afternoons-- The credulous—decoy-- Enamored—of the Conjuror-- That spurned us—Yesterday! |
Poet Emily Dickinson, during the whole of her poem “Heaven is what I cannot Reach!” calls upon the use of symbols to expose that by nature, humankind desires what it cannot have. Dickinson begins her poem by declaring “Heaven is what I cannot Reach! / The apple on the tree, / Provided it do hopeless hang, / That “heaven” is, to me” (1-4). As Heaven generally represents a place of peace, harmony and fulfillment, the speaker is indicating that such virtues are unattainable. But, still it is something mankind strives for. The imagery of the apple hanging on the tree symbolizes something that is desirable and right in front of someone, yet, is just out of reach. Similarly, in stanza two, the speaker conveys a longing for “The color on the cruising cloud” (5) and in stanza three, “Her teasing Purples – Afternoons -” (9). Both lines symbolize something beautiful that can never be grasped. The fact that these object can never be attained make them all the more irresistible. Building on to this symbolism, Dickinson notes, “The interdicted ground / Behind the hill, the house behind, - / There Paradise is found!” (6-8). The reference to forbidden ground and the repetition of “behind” reflects that paradise is something always on the horizon, but forever out of reach. Dickinson is once again demonstrating that often the things that one desires most are elusive. Through symbolism in her poem, Dickinson accentuates the idea that mankind will inevitably be drawn to an object of insurmountable nature.
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Apple on the tree
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NXOBvUItH3I (Link if video does not load)