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Emily DickinsonA modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
The king is a symbol in “We never know how high we are.” In the historical context of America and its war against England and King George III, a king represents tyranny and injustice. Thus, it’s logical to “fear to be a King” (Line 8). A person doesn’t want to be a king. People shouldn’t try to free themselves from the twisting cubits because they are supposed to confront restraint — it’s part of the human condition. From this interpretation, the king symbolizes excess and immodesty, while the people warped by the cubits represent commendable humility.
In a second interpretation, the king does not necessarily symbolize the specific ruler of a country, or even someone male and wealthy; it represents someone with ample power and authority in their life. Here, a king symbolizes a person fully in charge. What constrains the average person doesn’t limit a king or another type of exceptional person. They have liberated themselves from the warping measurements of humankind.
By Emily Dickinson
A Bird, came down the Walk
Emily Dickinson
A Clock stopped—
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A narrow Fellow in the Grass (1096)
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Because I Could Not Stop for Death
Emily Dickinson
"Faith" is a fine invention
Emily Dickinson
Fame Is a Fickle Food (1702)
Emily Dickinson
Hope is a strange invention
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"Hope" Is the Thing with Feathers
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I Can Wade Grief
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I Felt a Cleaving in my Mind
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I Felt a Funeral, in My Brain
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If I Can Stop One Heart from Breaking
Emily Dickinson
If I should die
Emily Dickinson
If you were coming in the fall
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I heard a Fly buzz — when I died
Emily Dickinson
I'm Nobody! Who Are You?
Emily Dickinson
Much Madness is divinest Sense—
Emily Dickinson
Success Is Counted Sweetest
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Tell all the truth but tell it slant
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The Only News I Know
Emily Dickinson