Was Emily Dickinson mentally unstable?

    



  After reading Emily Dickinson's biography and many of her poems, the only thing I could think about was how she seemed so mentally unstable.  There are so many red flags in her life and in her writings that show her unhealthy mental state. Like most mentally sick people, Dickinson's problems probably weren't brought up by one event in her life. There seem to be many different clues as to why she acted so strangely, and what disorders she actually had.


     Emily Elizabeth Dickinson was born in 1830 in Massachusetts. Her family was successful, but not wealthy. Her father, Edward Dickinson, married Emily Norcross. They had three children: William Austin, Emily Elizabeth, and Lavinia Norcross. Their father, Edward, was very protective of his wife and daughters. They lived an intensely sheltered life, which probably sparked her reclusive personality traits. Dickinson's mother fit the role of the traditional housewife. She was gentle and soft-spoken, but so overwhelmed by her husband that she was diagnosed with neurasthenia (weakness of the nerves, fatigue, dizziness, anxiety, depression). She was often very distant when caring for her children, and Emily Dickinson sometimes wrote how she felt that she had no mother. Her father was away more than he was home, and it took a toll on the children. Dickinson received a great education, excelling in Greek, Latin, and Botany. She refused to study the prescribed path for most women, like school teaching.
http://www.hermitary.com/articles/dickinson.html


     During most of her childhood years, Dickinson's bedroom overlooked a cemetery. Themes of tombs, graveyards, and death were imprinted in her mind, possibly leading to her lingering thoughts of such things. Death became a real element for Dickinson when Tuberculosis and rheumatic fever claimed many people of all ages. She clearly observed pain, sickness, and suffering.



     Dickinson had an obvious struggle with her faith. She was always searching for answers, and felt pressure by her peers to conform to their beliefs. Many of her friends in school accepted the Evangelical message, and she began isolating herself from them. Being more and more alone, Dickinson turned to letters as comfort. She would write to relatives and her disappearing "friends" from school. Emily Dickinson was discouraged from a social life by her father from a young age, which made her isolate herself from the outside world. She attached herself to people very easily, holding on for dear life, even if it was only in her mind. Her correspondence with female friends was very deep and affectionate, raising questions about her sexuality. When her brother married and moved next door, Emily developed an intense obsession with his wife, which she expressed in letters.
http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/exchange/node/2126


     Emily Dickinson spent most of her adult life on the grounds of her father's home. She avoided public appearances and travel, which shows signs of depression. She avoided speaking to people, even hiding when visitors came to her father's home. When she did permit company, she spoke to the person through a cracked door. She seemed unable or unwilling to conform to "normal" behavior. Dickinson didn't learn to tell time until her mid-teens, and she expressed the desire to remain a child. In her late twenties, she wore only white, and withdrew from others until she didn't see anyone but her own father. In 1874, Emily Dickinson's father died. The funeral was held in the home's entrance hall, and Emily stayed in her room with the door barely cracked open.



     Many people over the years have diagnosed Emily Dickinson with different sicknesses, like anorexia, bipolar ism, agoraphobia, and manic depression. Dickinson's sensitivity to her own internal state may have driven her to seclusion. She retreated into her own brain like a sanctuary, full of contentment, and at other times, a prison. Mental illness or not, Emily Dickinson was one of the most famous American poets in history.