The title “Sacred Emily” is an allusion to the poet Emily Dickinson. In a way, the poem is dedicated to her as Stein makes mention of Emily in line 141-142 : “So great so great Emily. / Sew grate sew grate Emily.”
In these lines Stein is praising Dickinson for her work as a woman writer. Mentioning Dickinson also makes connections to Stein’s own sexuality. Dickinson’s sexuality is unclear since she never married nor had been in any major romantic relationships; however, it is speculated that she could have been a lesbian. One of the major factors of this reading of her sexuality are her letters and poems to a very close friend, Susan Gilbert. Stein could be playing on this idea to display her own sexuality, as it connects some of the lines such as “Sweeter than peaches and pears and cream.” and "Pussy pussy pussy what what." (Jarraway, 43) Information from: http://www.sappho.com/poetry/e_dickin.html, Works Cited Image from: http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/ |