Breathing Emily Dickinson

Breathing Emily Dickinson:inspiration/expiration Eric Méchoulan (bio) Breathe, n A. Whisper; utter softly; speak privately; [fig.] confide; make known Breathe in Ear more modern God's old fashioned vows B. Inhale and exhale; process air through the lungs; [fig.] live; subsist And now, by Life deprived, In my own Grave I breathe C. Exist; show life force; [fig.] purr; yowl; make vibrant animal sounds With thee in the Tamarind wood -- Leopard breathes -- at last! D. Absorb; assimilate; internalize; infuse; gather. And now, removed from Air -- I simulate the Breath, so well -- E. Gasp; draw in air; respond with admiration 'Tis Costly -- So are purples! 'Tis just the price of Breath -- F. Flutter; flicker; waver; hover; palpitate; [fig.] betray; vacillate; be unfaithful: An hour behind the fleeting breath G. Share; experience; partake of; have in common When it comes, the Landscape listens -- Shadows -- hold their breath -- [End Page 256] H. Inhale deeply; rest from action; recover from panic Straighten -- look cautious for their Breath -- But make no syllable -- like Death -- I. Circulate; disperse; mobilize; pass around; cause to move We breathed -- Then dropped the Air -- Which bore it best? J. Speak; communicate; express truth; transmit knowledge; [fig.] commune A Word that breathes distinctly Has not the power to die Breathing, verbal n A. Gasp; hyperventilation; respiration; sudden inhalation of air; [fig.] nervousness; anxiety; feeling of caution; sign of fear To suspend the Breath Is the most we can B. Existing; living; surviving; enduring; abiding For this -- accepted Breath -- Through it -- compete with Death -- Breathless, adj A. Unearthly; eternal; timeless; not mortal; [fig.] active; racing; rapid; speedy; in a hurry the breathless sun B. Not exhaling; holding in air; unable to breathe freely; [fig.] pendulous; suspended; full of anticipation; paralyzed from emotion the breathless Bee And when her breath was done1 [End Page 257] Eric Méchoulan Eric Méchoulan taught at the Université de Montréal. He enjoys thinking about intermediality, sometimes via the 17th century. He has also been an editor of SubStance since 1996. Footnotes 1. For the lexicon, see Emily Dickinson Lexicon, Brigham Young University, 2007-2023, https://edl.byu.edu/lexicon/b/46; for Emily Dickinson's works extracts, see Emily Dickinson Poems, University of Pennsylvania, www.writing.upenn.edu/library/Dickinson-Emily_Complete-Poems.html Copyright © 2023 Johns Hopkins University Press and SubStance, Inc

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