There is another Loneliness— That many die without Not want or friend occasions it Or circumstances or Lot
But nature sometimes, sometimes thought And who so it befall Is richer than could be divulged By mortal numeral—
My essay, titled "Loneliness as Superpower" follows:
Emily Dickinson’s“There is another Loneliness” begins, as many Dickinson poems do, as if she were responding to being called lonely or to a conversation where the word “loneliness” had been used in some conventional way, that is, a lack of social interaction (“want or friend” or maybe ‘want of friend’). The use of the word “another” seems to reference that implied context. The Loneliness (with an upper case L) that Dickinson is talking about here is not negative, but rather, a lifesaver (“many die without”). It is something powerful, and rich, and not impacted by “circumstances or Lot” but rather, is innate, as “nature” which she seems to be using here as something inherent - as opposed to nurture rather than the external environment. As so many of Dickinson’s poems are meta poetic, it’s not a stretch to think that she could be talking here of the poetic muse or a singular interiority that has the look of loneliness but is actually a superpower (“Loneliness”), rich and in a way immortal (“richer than could be divulged/By mortal numeral). The structure of the work is the classic two stanza, quatrain form though the two dashes - one in the first line and one at the very end form set of prongs are visually striking while also making creating a very subtle circularity as those dashes, both open, seem to connect the thoughts between the first line with its alternate Loneliness and the end with its mortal numeral as if in some way those two lines were in opposition to one another. One might stretch the concept of a mortal numeral to a kind of spreadsheet or accounting where life is measured by productivity rather than introspection and creativity. These opposing forces continue to shine a positive light on the other Loneliness. Rhythmically, this poem uses the standard iambic pentameter with an ABAB rhyme scheme, though naturally the rhymes are slanted so Loneliness and it are the matches along with without and Lot, thought and divulged, and befall and numeral. At first glance these words don’t seem to rhyme at all, but when reading the poem aloud, the regular meter and the placement of the words does create a rhyme pattern that seems even to the ear. There is very little alliteration in this poem, but there are interesting repetitions, such as the double ‘sometimes’ in the second stanza, and the way that Loneliness and Lot are both capitalised. In the first stanzas the words “There” and “That” in the first stanza and “But” and “By” in the second provide extra emphasis and help keep the sonics regular and contained -as a sort of constraint of form. This creates a lovely structural tension that conveys the power of a deep solitude that might look like loneliness, but is actually the creative imagination.
