As by the dead we love to sit [Emily Dickinson]

Καθώς δίπλα στους νεκρούς μάς αρέσει να καθόμαστε,

Τόσο υπέροχα γινόμαστε αξιότιμοι –

Καθώς για τους χαμένους παλεύουμε

Παρόλο που οι υπόλοιποι είν’ εδώ –

Με μαθηματικά σπασμένα

Το βραβείο μας προσδιορίζουμε

Άπειρο – στη φθίνουσα του αναλογία

Στα τσιγκούνικά μας μάτια!  

As by the dead we love to sit,

Become so wondrous dear –

As for the lost we grapple

Tho' all the rest are here –

In broken mathematics

We estimate our prize

Vast - in its fading ratio

To our penurious eyes!

88

Στην ανάλυσή της, η Susan Kornfeld (ακολουθεί ολόκληρη στο τέλος), τονίζει τη μαθηματική μεταφορά που βρίσκεται στην ουσία τού ποιήματος αυτού. Την αναλογία μεταξύ της πολύ μεγάλης αξίας που δίνουμε στους πρόσφατα πεθαμένους σε σχέση με τους ζωντανούς. Μια αναλογία που όμως με τον καιρό φθίνει. Εμείς, με τα «τσιγκούνικα», πεπερασμένων δυνατοτήτων μάτια μας – η λέξη «τσιγκούνικα» χρησιμοποιείται για να υπονοηθεί, από την ποιήτρια, η αδυναμία τους να δούνε πως στον παράδεισο είναι καλύτερα συγκριτικά με τη ζωή στη γη –, όσο περνά ο καιρός, σκεφτόμαστε όλο και πιο αραιά και όλο και λιγότερο έντονα τους πεθαμένους και αυτό μας βοηθά να μην τρελαθούμε.      

There’s an interesting mathematical metaphor at the heart of this poem.  The first stanza establishes that we esteem one who has recently died at higher value than those still alive. They are 'wondrous dear'. Dickinson chooses the word ‘dear’ to suggest a high price—and also to take advantage of the word’s other meaning as ‘beloved’.  But this valuation is ‘broken mathematics’ – it doesn’t add up. The ratio of dead friends to living is quite small, yet we consider ‘the prize’ to be ‘Vast’. The poet here may be considering ‘the prize’ to be the heavenly reunion. She indicated as much in an introductory note to the poem which was enclosed in a letter to Mrs. Holland. Dickinson remarked that meeting is worth the parting—and when someone dies we have an even more joyous reunion in heaven, thus more than compensating for the dying.

Problem words are “fading” and “penurious”.  I read it as follows: As time goes by, the ratio fades and we think less frequently and with less emotion of the departed. The once bright and dominating ratio recedes in our mind. How could it be otherwise? We have to be a bit stingy with our emotional outflow or we would soon be mad. So the word ‘penurious’, like ‘dear’, is doing double duty here: it suggests the need to ration our feelings and it also suggests our earthly eyes’ inability to see the larger truths.

Not many poets could successfully discuss the death of a dear one in terms of value ratios, but Dickinson pulls it off, I think. Her choice of words evoke both the numbers and the emotion. It's a very preachy-Christian-y, mid 1800's idea: we are better off in Heaven than on Earth. Death is a ticket to this great place and we should welcome the death of our friends as offering us just one more incentive to want to go there. 

The use of ‘grapple’ is interesting, too. We don’t just mourn the dead, we reach desperately for them, struggling with our hearts and minds to either come to grips with the loss or to try fruitlessly to keep them alive in some way.