| If you missed yesterday’s post, a noir adaptation of my discovery of the Concordance to the Poems of Emily Dickinson, click HERE. In today’s sequel, “Double Eternity,” hailed by critics as “the quintessential noir blog post of a retired middle school principal and a seductive femme fatale,” I deliver further info on the Concordance, the 899-page volume edited by S. P. Rosenbaum and published by Cornell University Press that maps out every word in Dickinson’s poetry based on Thomas H. Johnson's definitive three-volume edition from 1955. Below: A particularly steamy scene from "Double Eternity" starring James Asher and Emily Dickinson, the Belle of Amherst: |  |
 | ASHER (His eyes have catches a glimpse of her anklet): That's a honey of an anklet you're wearing, Mrs. Dickinson. (Emily smiles faintly and covers the anklet with her slacks.) EMILY: You think you’re a pretty smart poetry man, now don't you, Mr. Asher? ASHER: I've had many years of it. EMILY: Doing pretty well? |
| ASHER: It keeps me off the streets. EMILY: You blog only about my poetry – or all kinds? ASHER (Ignores her question): I wish you'd tell me what's engraved on that anklet. EMILY: Just my name. ASHER: As for instance? EMILY: Emily. ASHER: Emily. I think I like that. EMILY: But you're not sure? ASHER: I'd have to drive it around the block a couple of times in my two-horse curricle, baby. EMILY (Standing up again, a bit vexed): There's a speed limit in this town, Mr. Asher. Fifteen miles an hour. ASHER: How fast was I going, officer? EMILY: I'd say about fifty -- and those horses heads are toward Eternity. ASHER: Suppose you slow me down and give me a ticket. | EMILY: Suppose I let you off with a warning this time? ASHER: Suppose it doesn't take. EMILY: Suppose I have to whack you over the knuckles. ASHER: Suppose I bust out crying and put my head on your shoulder. EMILY: Suppose you just get back into that curricle of yours and roll off – past the school where children play. (They both move toward the archway and head to the entrance door.) ASHER: Suppose I roll on back tomorrow – say around noon. Will you be here? EMILY: Noon – the hinge of day? I suppose so. I usually am. ASHER: Same chair, same perfume, same anklet? EMILY (Blushing): I wonder if I know what you mean, Mr. Asher. (She opens the door and motions for him to leave.) ASHER: I wonder if you wonder. (He walks out.) |
Pretty sizzling stuff, huh? No wonder critics call Dickinson one of the most haunting female figures in the history of poetry. Her performance in that scene was dripping with saucy yet haunting nuance.
Dickinson’s physical choices for the role were highly scrutinized, particularly the notorious white dress she wore throughout much of the film; many contemporary reviewers and early critics found it glaringly artificial. However, modern literary scholars often point out that this was a deliberate artistic choice on the part of Dickinson – and all agree she gave a masterclass in writing poetry in "Double Eternity," proving her immense range and her ability to completely astound her audience.
Now...back to the topic at hand:
Dickinson’s physical choices for the role were highly scrutinized, particularly the notorious white dress she wore throughout much of the film; many contemporary reviewers and early critics found it glaringly artificial. However, modern literary scholars often point out that this was a deliberate artistic choice on the part of Dickinson – and all agree she gave a masterclass in writing poetry in "Double Eternity," proving her immense range and her ability to completely astound her audience.
Now...back to the topic at hand:
Features of the Rosenbaum Concordance
I noted yesterday that the book did not include the words “the,” “a/an,” and “and.” However, take a look at this – it also excludes these words:
- Alphabetical Index: The book provides the context and exact line for every significant word used across Dickinson's 1,775 poems.
- Frequency Count: It includes an appendix that ranks words by usage frequency (e.g., revealing that she used the word "I" 1,682 times and "heaven" 143 times).
- Variant Spellings: It cross-references Dickinson’s eccentric contractions, unconventional variants, and misspellings
I noted yesterday that the book did not include the words “the,” “a/an,” and “and.” However, take a look at this – it also excludes these words:
NOTE: The above pics are from the preface of the Concordance, and I will post all sixteen pages of the preface on my travelogue, “Dial ‘Em’ for Emily,” HERE.
I also mentioned yesterday that the text does not include the word “no,” and I found this: “Because ‘no’ is such a high-frequency filler and negation word, most standard abridged concordances omit it to save space.”
Concerning the Concordance to the Poems of Emily Dickinson, I uncovered this:
“The 1964 Concordance to the Poems of Emily Dickinson omits the word ‘no.’ Poet and visual artist Jen Bervin responded to this oversight in 2020 by creating an artist book, Concordance Omission. In it, Bervin documents the 395 times Dickinson used the word ‘no’ in her poetry.
Dickinson famously referred to ‘no’ as ‘the wildest word we consign to language.’ The original 1964 concordance, edited by S.P. Rosenbaum, omitted it based on the assumption that it was a ‘nonsignificant’ word, leaving a striking gap in Dickinson scholarship.”
Jen Bervin’s site is HERE, and her artwork “Concordance Omission” is below. Hmm…I see “395” and “NO,” and 3, 9 and 5 are punched – but there are also additional punches for 5 and 6. Do 5 and 6 on a computer punch card represent "n" and "o"? Can any computer-punch-cardiologist explain that?
Concerning the Concordance to the Poems of Emily Dickinson, I uncovered this:
“The 1964 Concordance to the Poems of Emily Dickinson omits the word ‘no.’ Poet and visual artist Jen Bervin responded to this oversight in 2020 by creating an artist book, Concordance Omission. In it, Bervin documents the 395 times Dickinson used the word ‘no’ in her poetry.
Dickinson famously referred to ‘no’ as ‘the wildest word we consign to language.’ The original 1964 concordance, edited by S.P. Rosenbaum, omitted it based on the assumption that it was a ‘nonsignificant’ word, leaving a striking gap in Dickinson scholarship.”
Jen Bervin’s site is HERE, and her artwork “Concordance Omission” is below. Hmm…I see “395” and “NO,” and 3, 9 and 5 are punched – but there are also additional punches for 5 and 6. Do 5 and 6 on a computer punch card represent "n" and "o"? Can any computer-punch-cardiologist explain that?
| UPDATE: I figured it out -- the numbers on the card represent the letters as follows: |  |
I also found her book, “Concordance NO,” HERE. Hmm…it’s priced at $2,750.00, so the publisher didn’t have me in mind when the book was released -- LOL!
On her site, Bervin includes this information about her book:
Did you catch that? Dickinson used “no” 395 times and “yes” just four times? I checked that out – the “yes” info (not the "no") – on the Dickinson archive, and – LOL – wait till you see what happened:
* I typed “yes” into the search field, and fourteen entries popped up representing six poems. Could Bervin have been wrong? Did Dickinson use “yes” six times, not four? Continue, dear reader.
* The six poems identified in the search results were the following:
Awake ye muses nine, sing me a strain divine
Her Sweet turn to leave the Homestead
I showed her heights she never saw
If I could bribe them by a Rose
Sweet mountains – ye tell me no lie
'Tis so much joy! 'Tis so much joy!
* I next checked the six poems for the word yes, and – **a drum roll please** – Dickinson used the word four times in four different poems:
Her Sweet turn to leave the Homestead
I showed her heights she never saw
If I could bribe them by a Rose
'Tis so much joy! 'Tis so much joy!
So why do “Awake ye muses nine, sing me a strain divine” and “Sweet mountains – ye tell me no lie” appear on the list? I ran a word search for "yes" in each of the poems, and the results are below. Take a look:
* I typed “yes” into the search field, and fourteen entries popped up representing six poems. Could Bervin have been wrong? Did Dickinson use “yes” six times, not four? Continue, dear reader.
* The six poems identified in the search results were the following:
Awake ye muses nine, sing me a strain divine
Her Sweet turn to leave the Homestead
I showed her heights she never saw
If I could bribe them by a Rose
Sweet mountains – ye tell me no lie
'Tis so much joy! 'Tis so much joy!
* I next checked the six poems for the word yes, and – **a drum roll please** – Dickinson used the word four times in four different poems:
Her Sweet turn to leave the Homestead
I showed her heights she never saw
If I could bribe them by a Rose
'Tis so much joy! 'Tis so much joy!
So why do “Awake ye muses nine, sing me a strain divine” and “Sweet mountains – ye tell me no lie” appear on the list? I ran a word search for "yes" in each of the poems, and the results are below. Take a look:
 |  |
For some reason, my search for “yes” picked up “eyes” in these two entries – but NOT for the other 232 of the 234 entries for “eyes” on the archive. It also picked up “mayest” in “Awake ye muses nine,” but not the poet’s use of “mayest” in “No rack can torture me.” Oops. I think some tweaking might be needed on the archive’s search feature. ; )
I'll have a few more bits of info about the Concordance tomorrow; for now, though, the hour is growing late so I'll close today's post with lines from the final scene of "Double Eternity":
Asher’s wife enters the office. They stare at each other for a long moment.
WIFE: Can you come and help me with the dishes?
ASHER: I've got a different idea. Look here. Suppose you went back to bed and didn't find those dishes till later, when I’m done here. From then on we’ll play it any way you like. Would you do that much for me?
WIFE: Give me one good reason.
ASHER I need like thirty minutes to an hour to finish up where I'm going with this.
WIFE: You're not going anywhere except the kitchen to help me.
ASHER: But I’ve gotta get this thing done.
WIFE: You’ve been on that computer for hours. That Dickinson stuff can wait. Now c'mon.
Asher gets up and starts to move towards the kitchen, staggering a little, holding himself upright with great effort. He looks back at his computer and then goes out his office door, leaving it wide open. The camera follows his staggering walk toward the kitchen.
I'll have a few more bits of info about the Concordance tomorrow; for now, though, the hour is growing late so I'll close today's post with lines from the final scene of "Double Eternity":
Asher’s wife enters the office. They stare at each other for a long moment.
WIFE: Can you come and help me with the dishes?
ASHER: I've got a different idea. Look here. Suppose you went back to bed and didn't find those dishes till later, when I’m done here. From then on we’ll play it any way you like. Would you do that much for me?
WIFE: Give me one good reason.
ASHER I need like thirty minutes to an hour to finish up where I'm going with this.
WIFE: You're not going anywhere except the kitchen to help me.
ASHER: But I’ve gotta get this thing done.
WIFE: You’ve been on that computer for hours. That Dickinson stuff can wait. Now c'mon.
Asher gets up and starts to move towards the kitchen, staggering a little, holding himself upright with great effort. He looks back at his computer and then goes out his office door, leaving it wide open. The camera follows his staggering walk toward the kitchen.
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