"Could it be madness - this?" : bipolar disorder and the art of containment in the poetry of Emily Dickinson.
| dc.contributor.advisor | Woeber, Catherine Ann. | |
| dc.contributor.author | Pillay, Ivan Pragasan. | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2010-09-01T12:49:03Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2010-09-01T12:49:03Z | |
| dc.date.created | 2007 | |
| dc.date.issued | 2007 | |
| dc.description | Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2007. | |
| dc.description.abstract | This dissertation engages in a critical analysis of the poetry of Emily Dickinson which, to me, suggests that the poet suffered from a type of manic-depression known specifically in psychiatric parlance as bipolar disorder. I argue that although Dickinson experienced much pain and suffering she learnt, through time, to address, understand and contain adversity - that ultimately, she transformed these experiences into the raw materials for poetic creation. Dickinson's poetic achievements are often obscured by a misunderstanding of her mental and emotional constitution. This thesis provides an alternative to the views of those commentators who maintain that Emily Dickinson was insane, neurotic or delusional. I intend, ultimately, to offer the reader a fresh insight into Emily Dickinson's poetry by reading it from the assumption that she suffered from bipolar disorder. | |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/10413/827 | |
| dc.language.iso | en | en_US |
| dc.subject | Dickinson, Emily, 1830-1886--Criticism and interpretation. | en_US |
| dc.subject | American poetry--Women authors--History and criticism. | en_US |
| dc.subject | Mental illness in literature. | en_US |
| dc.subject | Literature and mental illness--United States. | en_US |
| dc.subject | Women and literature--United States--History--19th century. | en_US |
| dc.subject | Theses--English. | en |
| dc.title | "Could it be madness - this?" : bipolar disorder and the art of containment in the poetry of Emily Dickinson. | en_US |
| dc.type | Thesis | en_US |