On Image Systems And Imagery Prototypes In Emily Dickinson's Poems

This essay aims to outline the system of images of Emily Dickinson's poetry's on basis of predecessors' research and guided by prototype theory and theory of unconsciousness.According to the content that the images display, the whole is divided into four kinds: natural images, homestead, death, and images in Holy Bible. They are the systems into which all the images of her poetry can be placed. From a macroscopic perspective, the text is to analysis images of prototype which work as mainstays in each image system for the aim of comprehensive relations and significance of poet image as a whole.The whole essay includes 4 chapters. The first chapter is about natural image system which is supported by five prototype images: water, flower, apple, snake and fly. The five images express Dickson's revolt to patriarchal society, to canon of Christianity, and her fierce devouring affection as well as her lofty equal spirit for lives in the nature .The second chapter proofs Dickson is fixate on half-enclosure which is spiritual and eternal space not only for the dead but for the living .The third chapter, death image system is influenced by Christian death sense, which effuses Dickson's longing for living in eternity after death, Dickson keeps calm and graceful to death .In the last chapter is about Holy Bible images system. God, the heaven, and Garden of Eden suggest Emily is in the dilemma of religious belief. Whether her methods of copping with Christianity is acceptance ,compromise or defiance, Holy Bible images system could be regarded as poetess's attempt to release from tension of Christianity and establish her own religion, at least ,voice her own mind towards spirit of Puritanism.These images of prototype manifest profound influence of traditional and contemporary western culture to Dickinson's creation. she spreads a wide range of images along the center of these prototypes .This strategy knits all images in Emily's products in a web. In the web of images, each one can be explained more clearly and deeply as a knot of it, because with image web set -up ,a background and a rout is offered for people to trace an image to its root .Therefore , readers' understanding to her poems will be improved ,people will have a keenly aware of the relationship between Emily's poetry and traditional western culture. In this way ,we can rebuild a normal image of Emily Dickson.