Many of her poems deal with themes of death and immortality, two recurring topics in letters to her friends, and also explore aesthetics, society, nature, and spirituality. Her poems were unique for her era they contain short lines, typically lack titles, and often use slant rhyme as well as unconventional capitalization and punctuation. The poems published then were usually edited significantly to fit conventional poetic rules.

While Dickinson was a prolific writer, her only publications during her lifetime were 10 of her nearly 1,800 poems, and one letter. Dickinson never married, and most friendships between her and others depended entirely upon correspondence. Considered an eccentric by locals, she developed a penchant for white clothing and was known for her reluctance to greet guests or, later in life, even to leave her bedroom. Evidence suggests that Dickinson lived much of her life in isolation. After studying at the Amherst Academy for seven years in her youth, she briefly attended the Mount Holyoke Female Seminary before returning to her family's home in Amherst. Dickinson was born in Amherst, Massachusetts, into a prominent family with strong ties to its community. Little-known during her life, she has since been regarded as one of the most important figures in American poetry.

Emily Elizabeth Dickinson (December 10, 1830 – May 15, 1886) was an American poet.

The Complete Poems by Emily Dickinson