I had no time to Hate —
Because
The Grave would hinder Me —
And Life was not so
Ample I
Could finish — Enmity —

Nor had I time to Love —
But since
Some Industry must be —
The little Toil of Love —
I thought
Be large enough for Me —

Analysis, meaning and summary of Emily Dickinson's poem I had no time to Hate

5 Comments

  1. Mick says:

    First Stanza – Life is short, and with that realization, there is no time for her to Hate. The second, if life wasn’t so “ample” (Def. Enough or more than enough; plentiful) she would be willing to die with deep seated hate or hostility towards others (i.e. Enmity). Basically, life is too short to hate and too plentiful to die with strong hostility or hate for others (why be angry and hostile when life is so full).

    Second Stanza – She didn’t feel like she had time for love since life requires hard work (Industry capitalized), but the small amounts of love which she believes were hard work (Toil capitalized), were enough to make her happy. Some people take this to mean that life is also too short and maybe too busy to truly love someone, but that love is so powerful one can find enjoyment and appreciate even the the small amounts they are able to experience in life.

  2. Nicky says:

    does it have anything literary element in this poem?

  3. someone says:

    • First stanza- Since she felt that her death (suicidal tendencies and depression) was near, she had no time to hate and her personal life was empty and so should did not want enemies.

    Second stanza- She did not have time to love either, but some of the industry ( probably the press, since she was involved in poetry) must be supporting her. And her little world of poetry (toil of love) was large enough for her to repay it.

  4. katherine moeller says:

    I think she’s saying life is too short to hate- and that, although life may also seem too short to love, the realitive labor of love is minor compared to the labor of hate and worth the risk.

  5. Jessica Velez says:

    I think what Emily is trying to say is that
    LIFE itself may sometimes have no room to over power HATEover love. Her direct comparissons with the two leads me to believe that she was very bitter but not concerned with deeply rooted hatred.

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