Early Influences:
* Family: Dickinson came from a family of strong intellect and literary interest. Her father was a lawyer and congressman, and her mother fostered a love of reading.
* Education: Dickinson attended Amherst Academy and Mount Holyoke Female Seminary, where she was exposed to a classical education and the works of renowned poets.
* Personal Experiences: While she lived a secluded life, Dickinson was keenly observant of her surroundings and internal world. Her life experiences, including family dynamics, her faith, and the changing world around her, provided rich material for her poems.
Developing her Style:
* Self-Taught: Dickinson didn't receive formal training as a poet, instead developing her style through extensive reading and her own experimentation.
* Private Practice: Dickinson wrote primarily for herself, often keeping her poems in her private collection. She only began sharing them with a select few, and her poems were not widely published until after her death.
* Unique Voice: She forged a distinctive voice that experimented with form, punctuation, and diction. Her use of dashes, unconventional capitalization, and exploration of unconventional themes (death, nature, spirituality) set her apart.
The Recognition:
* Legacy: Dickinson's poems were largely unknown during her lifetime. It was only after her death that her sister, Lavinia, discovered the vast collection of poems and worked to have them published.
* Critical Acclaim: Dickinson's work was initially met with mixed reviews, but her unique style and insights into human experience slowly gained recognition. Her poems are now widely celebrated for their depth, originality, and enduring relevance.
Therefore, Emily Dickinson's becoming a poet was less about a specific moment and more about a journey influenced by her upbringing, education, personal experiences, and a dedication to her craft. She developed her own distinctive voice, writing primarily for herself before her poems were discovered and celebrated by the world.