Much Madness is divinest Sense

EMILY DICKINSON
Much Madness is divinest Sense To a discerning Eye Much Sense - the starkest Madness `Tis the Majority
In this, as All, prevail Assent - and you are sane Demur - you're straightway dangerous And handled with a Chain -

June Chalinee
Outline : Emily Dickinson - Much Madness is divinest Sense

Argument: The poem use a broad definition words that able

interpret in many ways.

Tis the Majority

In this, as all, prevail
majority doesnt win physically but
somehow not because majority wins but because
minority give up and eventually follow popular
belief.

Assent and you are sane

Demur youre straightway dangerous
Assent sometimes doesnt mean youre
hundred percent compliant, maybe you was forced.
On the other hands, Demur doesnt mean you
explicitly denied opposing a popular belief, you just
have your own way but they still condemn you.

And handled with a chain.

Handled with chains dont mean you have to
go to jail but sometimes it means you might locked
yourself or run away all of your life for avoiding
majoritys insult.

June Chalinee
Paragraph

The poem Much Madness is divinest sense use a broad

definition and broad meaning words that able to interpret in many
ways.
Tis the Majority.
In this, as all, prevail
Dickinson, E. (1960). Much madness is divinest sense. (4-5)

Firstly, many times majority doesnt mean many people or

most of people but in this poem it including person who has more
power than you. For example, when Western started colonization,
they said Eastern were underdeveloped and tried to rule Eastern.
Western didnt have more people but they had more technology and
weapons, they had more power so they prevailed.
Demur youre straightway dangerous
Dickinson, E. (1960). Much madness is divinest sense. (7)

Secondly, on this part, Straightway dangerous doesnt mean

you may kill people or hurt people unconsciously but sometimes it
means you may insecure majoritys belief. For example, in the past if
you worship to something that its not your predecessors faithful,
you may damage peoples faith of original belief, especially religion.
And handled with a chain
Dickinson, E. (1960). Much madness is divinest sense. (8)

Lastly, chain doesnt mean go to jail, it might but sometimes it

means locking yourself with the majoritys opinion and dont dare to
free yourself from the majoritys thinking. May be handled means
was executed. According to paragraph above, if youre heresy or
eccentric, youre dangerous, they might hanged you or burned you.
In conclusion, this poems purpose and meaning may change
depending on readers interpret because of using words, which have
many definitions.

Reference
Dickinson, E. (1960). Much madness is divinest sense. In T. Johnson (Ed.), The
complete poems of
Emily Dickinson (p. 209). New York, NY: Back Bay Books.