LITERARY DEVICES USED (is a technique a writer uses to produce a special effect in

their writing.)

1. Imagery: It is the use of figurative language to create visual

representations of actions, objects and ideas in our mind in such a way that
they appeal to our physical senses.

2. Simile and Metaphor: Both compare two distinct objects and draws
similarity between them. The difference is that Simile uses “as” or “like” and
Metaphor does not.

3. Hyperbole: It is deliberate exaggeration of actions and ideas for the sake of

emphasis.

4. Personification: It gives a thing, an idea or an animal human qualities.

5. Alliteration: It refers to the same consonant sounds in words coming

together.

6. Allegory: It is a literary technique in which an abstract idea is given a form

of characters, actions or events.

7. Irony: It is use of the words in such a way in which the intended meaning is
completely opposite to their literal meaning. For example:

Considering that "There is another sky" speaks of a worldly place (Amherst, Dickinson's
home) and an otherworldly place, heaven, the main poetic device is metaphor. The
speaker describes a worldly place with natural imagery but with otherworldly qualities.
"Another sky" directly means a sky that is not the sky of the Earth. This "other" sky would
have to be in another place. Presumably, this would be heaven because only a perfect
sky could be "Ever serene and fair." The same could be said for "another sunshine." So,
the speaker describes this "other" place but uses natural things to do so. In this other
place, the leaves are always green, there is no frost, and flowers never fade. This perfect
forest (and/or garden) is a metaphor for heaven.

But we can turn this metaphor around. As it becomes clear that Dickinson is describing a
heaven-like place, we could also say that she is using hyperbole to describe a worldly
place such as Amherst. In other words, in order to convince her brother, Austin, to come
to Amherst, she exaggerates (hyperbole) its qualities (to heaven-like levels) in order to
evoke some nostalgia and entice him to come to Amherst.

The adjective "whose" can be the possessive form of "who" or "which." That is to say that
"whose" can mean a "thing's" or a "person's." So, the little forest "Whose leaf is ever
green" can refer to heaven's (God's) place or the forest's place. Thus, the metaphor works
both ways: a description of heaven as a metaphor for Amherst, and a description of
Amherst as a metaphor for heaven. Therefore, you could say that the imagery used
describes either heaven or the natural world. It depends on how you read the poem. Is it
a poem describing the landscape of Amherst as a metaphor for heaven? Or, is the poem
describing heaven as a metaphor for Amherst?

About There is Another Sky: This poem was written by Emily Dickinson to her brother,
Austin, the eldest of the Dickinson’ children, who was in Boston at the time. It was sent
to him along with her letters. Different people interpret this poem in different ways, and
the real truth behind this piece of poetry can be said to be known only to the persons
involved.
Setting of the Poem: The poem is inside a letter sent to her beloved brother Austin.
Hence the setting is just that; a letter. But contained within, are fair skies, light and
darkness, forests and fields and many other elements of nature.

MOOD OF THE AUTHOR

ANALYSIS
‘There is another sky’ is perhaps one of Emily Dickinson’s most famous poems. The poem is
addressed to Emily’s brother Austin and, judging by the context of the letter which accompanied it, it
is plausible to say that in the poem Emily tries to persuade her brother to return from Boston to
Amherst. If we think of the poem in such way, the main focus becomes the place. Amherst is a
geographical location like many others yet in the poem it acquires a more celestial depiction. Indeed
whilst places can change, Amherst is described as a heavenly location which always stays the same.
What Emily is most probably hinting at here is that your home will always remain your home no matter
what, and as such will always be special to you. She reinforces this idea by adopting terms which
evoke perpetual features, for example ‘whose leaf is ever green’ and ‘unfading flowers’. The simple
fact the first line of the poem is ‘there is another sky’ indicates that the subject in discussion is not
something that is ‘here’ but something heavenly. Later on in the poem the speaker states ‘here is a
brighter green’ where ‘here’ indicates a more mundane location. Emily utilises this mixture of celestial
and heavenly features as a rhetorical device to reinforce the theme of perception and senses,
connecting the two world through the simple words ‘there’ and ‘here’.
This poem about finding such a wonderful garden does not have an explicit meaning – one could read
it as talking about a person whereas another could identify the sky as another place - and, in my
opinion, this is the true beauty of the poem, you can interpret it as you wish.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Emily Elizabeth Dickinson was born in 1830 in Amherst, Massachusetts. Emily was known for living
quite an introverted life. She was thought of as eccentric by the local community due to her regular
white clothing and her refusal to greet guests. Later on in her life she spent most of her time closed in
her room, therefore the majority of acquaintances Emily had were kept via letters.
During her lifetime, Emily Dickenson saw less than a dozen of her poems published out of almost
1,800! Also, the few poems that did make it were usually heavily edited before then being published
in order to adapt them to the literary style of the time. In fact only after Emily’s death in 1880, her sister
Lavinia found more of Emily’s poems and they finally began to be circulated and acknowledged for
their beauty. Emily’s poems are quite unique: they typically have short lines whilst using alternative
punctuation and capitalisation. The recurring themes of her poems are centred around death and more
sombre aspects of humanity which leave Emily Dickenson’s readers pensive and intrigued after each
and every verse.

The poem was not a stand-alone piece of work, but rather was included with a letter to
her brother encouraging him to come home from Boston to Amherst, where she lived. [1]

At face value it’s extolling the values of Amherst, comparing it to a vision of heaven
where nothing changes and everything is comforting and familiar. The rhythm and style
are somewhat like a hymn or religious chant, so I suppose it’s possible that Dickinson
has some deeper religious connotations she is trying to put across, but given the context
my guess is that it’s really just an appeal to Austin to remember that no matter the time
and distance, home remains home.