ENG 305 Fall 2015

The Terrors of the Mind

Katey Hare

Emily Dickinson illustrates the power of the inescapable horrors that lie within the
subconscious of our minds in her poem One need not be a Chamber- to be Haunted (1862).
Dickinson draws upon the themes found in popular Gothic fiction, arriving to the conclusion that
no horror any person might face in the form of a ghost or a haunted house could match the
terrors one can find inside their own mind. Dickinson was known to be a recluse for a good
portion of her life, some thinking it due to her treating her ill mother, while others suggest that it
was because she had agoraphobia, depression, or anxiety. Either way, Dickinson had a wealth of
experience being alone with her own thoughts. Although she cherished the company of her
friends and family, what Dickinson yearned for most of all was to harness her talent to the utmost
ability. Thus, Dickinson often wrote of the thoughts evoked by this abstinence, and in this poem,
delves into what we face when we are truly alone with our thoughts.
Dickinson begins with the idea that fear doesnt always originate from external forces,
but internal as well. The speaker states, One need not be a Chamber to be Haunted/ One need
not be a House (1050; 1-2). The common fears many have are of murderers, ghosts, and
monsters, yet Dickinson makes the point that the mind itself can be haunted. Moreover, the
seriousness in the tone of the poem enhances the weight of this statement. Referring to the mind
as Haunted (1), it is clear that the sensation she is talking about is more than a simple
preoccupation of the mind. The brain is equal to that of a haunted house. She ensures that this
applies to every human through the use of the phrase, One (1). She proceeds in the first stanza,
conveying the vastness of the subconscious as compared to that of a finite structure. The speaker
continues, The Brain has Corridors surpassing/ Material Place (3-4). She displays the fact
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that when the mind wanders, it can imagine an infinite number of things that can scare. These
endless thoughts can consume someone, going to places that could never be reached in the
physical world.
Dickinson opens the second stanza through a shift in tone, arguing that the horror of
facing a scary being cannot compare to what one faces in their mind. Unlike meeting an
apparition, when someone is alone with their thoughts, they are inescapable. The speaker claims,
Far safer, of a midnight meeting/ External Ghost/ Than its interior confronting/ That cooler
Host (5-8). Dickinson claims that the thoughts one has in their minds can put them in danger,
that the peril our own brains make us feel are stronger than that of a ghost. She utilizes the word
confronting (7), asserting that our thoughts not only frighten us, but challenge us. Many
individuals go to great lengths to ensure that they are never truly alone with their own thoughts.
When facing who we truly are, individuals can begin to consider several negative aspects of
themselves. Dickinsons point is the voice belongs to our minds, the scariest factor of all. This
idea, when put into context of Dickinsons life, matches her situation. Dickinson abstained from
human contact in order to attempt to reach her full creative potential. While being left alone with
her thoughts is what she was aiming for, she undoubtedly faced these negative feelings through
her solitude. Dickinson further fleshes out this concept in the third stanza.
Advancing from the second stanza, Dickinson communicates the lack of foreseeable
options when a persons mind haunts them. While there are always possible options for a person
trapped by a ghost or a killer, there is nothing one can do when they are trapped within
themselves. Dickinson enforces this point through downplaying the fear felt from those facing an
outside attack. The speaker continues, Far safer, through an Abbey gallop,/ The Stones achase
(9-10). Through going so far as to call this experience safer (9) further acts to emphasize the

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real danger present in ones head. The tone of the poem has gradually grown darker, moving
from acknowledging that the psyche can be haunted, to demonstrating the inherent dangers that
face every person inside their own mind. Dickinson further illustrates her point that the mind is a
force that cant be bested with tools for fended off with shields, for it is ourselves that we are
facing. Continuing from lines one and two, the speaker claims, Than unarmed, ones aself
encounter-/ In lonesome Place (11-12). Dickinson adds weight to this point through the
similarities in the two phrases, achase (10) and aself encounter (11). A self-encounter in
itself is not thought to be scary- it is something most do every day. Therefore, regarding it in the
same language as that of being chased by a frightening individual adds another layer to her
argument. A self-encounter is a common part of life, and yet it is more powerful and more
terrifying than that of a scary chase.
Dickinsons fourth stanza moves on to describe the haunting aspect of ones
subconscious: the sides of ourselves that frighten us. There is a terror underlying the idea of a
secret side to themselves that is unknown, only being exposed in solitude when one is
introspective. The speaker exclaims Ourself behind ourself, concealed/ Should startle most
(13-14). Dickinson describes the fear of having a shocking identity hidden within the
subconscious; one that is dangerous and frightening, yet all our own. Further, Dickinson
questions whether or not anyone even knows who they really are. The repetition of the word
ourself (13) further stresses Dickinsons point that the being we should fear most is ourselves,
not any external force. Further, this fear is on a different level. The speaker displays this divide
through explaining, Assassin hid in our Apartment/ Be Horrors Least (15-16). Dickinsons
constant reference to several external forces that individuals fear serve to display that the horrors
of every feared external force that humans can be perceived, thus are inconsequential when

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compared to the limitless ideas and thoughts we can have.

Dickinsons final stanza is the culmination of every point previously made. After
describing the horror that comes from the inescapable possibilities of what humans are forced to
think when alone, she transitions into explaining the morbid solution to these quandaries. She
describes the way in which the body may free itself from the thoughts it may not be able to
escape. The speaker states, The Body- borrows a Revolver/ He bolts the Door/ Oerlooking a
superior spectre/ Or More (17-20). What Dickinson is insinuating is that many who are
consumed by their own thoughts only find an escape through suicide. Dickinsons similar
phrases The Brain (3) and The Body (17) serve to display the two forces at war. Both are a
part of a person, and yet due to the nature of humans, they fight. A person who needs to escape
their mind may use their body to do so, and vice versa. Additionally, the last stanza insinuates the
effect of mental illness on an individual. As stated before, many scholars believe the reason for
Dickinsons reclusiveness was a possible mental illness such as agoraphobia, depression, and
anxiety. Dickinsons experience with possibly having a mental illness leads her to display why
individuals commit suicide: in order to escape the inescapable torment. Finally, Dickinson
evokes the precise mental anguish she describes through an ambiguous final line. The speaker
claims, Oerlooking a superior spectre/ Or More (19-20). While she clearly describes the
External Ghost (6), she leaves the cooler Host (8) to interpret what else could be knocking at
the door.
Emily Dickinsons poem captures a universal feeling. The anguish that individuals brains
subject them to is far worse than any attack. The brain may force a person to realize a part about
themselves that makes them uncomfortable, or it may hurtle an individual into a deep depression.
Dickinsons clever use of language and comparisons truly give weight to the terrors of the mind.

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ENG 305 Fall 2015

Work Cited
Dickinson, Emily. "407." The Norton Anthology of Literature by Women: The Traditions in
English. 3rd ed. Vol. 1. New York: Norton, 2007. 1050. Print.
"Emily Dickinson." Biography.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 25 Sept. 2015.