However, these often contradictory ideas and images work towards a sense of wholeness and integrity which is essentially open-ended in terms of its meaning. "Often the openendedness, the sense of incompletion, is achieved by sound as much as by visual imagery" Diction is another aspect that is often mentioned with regard to this poets particular style. "...it is her study of the individual word and her masterly discovery of the right word that chiefly defines her distinction."

In essence Dickinson uses many techniques such as slant rhymes and dissonance to create a disturbing and evocative atmosphere which leads to further questioning. This style is possibly an aspect that can be referred to in ascertaining the reason for her significance for modern poetry. In many cases reading a poem by Dickinson reminds one of the postmodern emphases on paradox and open-ended statement, combined with jarring combinations of images.

Conclusion and summary

In conclusion one could state the significance of Emily Dickinson's works lies in both style and content and the way that these two aspects are integrated to become an exciting exploration of poetic expression. The following extract fro her writing possibly expresses the inner note that resounds throughout her works and which is suggestive of the reason for their continued literary significance.

Much Madness is divinest Sense-

To a discerning Eye-

Much Sense -- the starkest Madness-

Tis the Majority

In this, as All, prevail-

Assent -- and you are sane-

Demur-you're straightway dangerous-

And handled with a Chain-

These lines express the modern view that the role of the poetry is to question assumptions about reality that most people take for granted through the use of evocative and insightful large and imagery. The poetry of Dickinson is from one point-of-view a form of 'Madness' but also the "divinest Sense." She was in effect an innovator, not only in terms of style, but also in terms of the larger role that allowed poetry to question and confront issues such as the conflict between the individual and society in a modern context.

Works Cited

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Leder, Sharon, and Andrea Abbott. The Language of Exclusion: The Poetry of Emily Dickinson and Christina Rossetti. New York: Greenwood Press, 1987. Book online. Available from Questia, http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=27480769.Internet. Accessed 15 July 2008.

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