I Dwell in Possibility

"I dwell in Possibility" by Emily Dickson features a lot of dashes that add a different angle to the poem. I feel to discover what the dashes do to the poem we must examine the inconsistencies.

Nearly every line of the poem ends in a dash and there are only two lines that do not and three lines that have a dash mid-line. The dash in line four between "Superior" and "for Doors" makes me believe that the dashes are pauses in the writing instead of connections. Dickinson would not claim that her realm is better than that of prose followed by a poem connecting nearly every line like a chunk of prose would. A line Superior for doors would imply that what was said prior would be more beneficial for doors so i cannot see why a dash would connect those two words together. I therefore led to believe that "Superior" is referring to the abundance of windows. The other two dashes mid-line involve describing the visitors and her occupation in her realm and a pause is the only way for the line to make sense by creating almost a question and answer feeling to the final stanza.

The first line without a dash at the end "And for an Everlasting Roof" further strengthens by belief that the lack of dash connects the last line as the gambrels of the sky is clearly referring to the roof. The other lack of dash to end a line completes the phrase of what the hands are gathering.