Poem: I Dwell In Possibility

by Emily Dickinson

I dwell in Possibility –
A fairer House than Prose –
More numerous of Windows –
Superior – for Doors –

Of Chambers as the Cedars –
Impregnable of eye –
And for an everlasting Roof
The Gambrels of the Sky –

Of Visitors – the fairest –
For Occupation – This –
The spreading wide my narrow Hands
To gather Paradise –
Questions:
Part A

What is a key theme of "I Dwell in Possibility"?

Imagination is a powerful force of creativity.

Just a small amount of interaction can sustain life.

Pent-up feelings can be deadly to the soul.

People can handle isolation only in small doses.
Question 2
Part B

How does Emily Dickinson develop the theme indicated in Part A?

She compares prose to a house with many windows and doors.

Dickinson compares the "roof" of poetry to the limitless sky.

Dickinson views her hands as narrow and weak.

She only occasionally visits the "house" of poetry.