Themes
Last Updated on September 5, 2023, by eNotes Editorial. Word Count: 133
Emily Dickinson’s "Wild Nights—Wild Nights!" uses vivid imagery to discuss the ecstasy of being with another entity. What that entity is has been debated since the poem was published after Dickinson’s death. Her good friend Thomas Higginson, who was partly responsible for the publication of her poetry, believed the poem had a religious theme. On first reading, many people believe that the theme of the poem is physical intimacy with a man. A third possibility is death, which Dickinson contemplated frequently, and which she had referred to as a "wild night" in other writings. Whatever the intended subject matter was, it is clear that the overall theme of the poem is the exaltation she might feel were she joined with the other entity, be it God, a man, or death.
See eNotes Ad-Free
Start your 48-hour free trial to get access to more than 30,000 additional guides and more than 350,000 Homework Help questions answered by our experts.
Already a member? Log in here.