I’m Nobody! Who are you?
Are you — Nobody — Too?
Then there’s a pair of us!
Don’t tell! they’d advertise — you know!
How dreary — to be — Somebody!
How public — like a Frog —
To tell one’s name — the livelong June —
To an admiring Bog!
I’m Nobody! Who are you?
Analysis, meaning and summary of Emily Dickinson's poem I’m Nobody! Who are you?
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I’m nobody! Who are you?
Are you nobody, too?
Then there’s the pair of us — don’t tell!
They’d banish us, you know.
How dreary to be somebody!
How public, like a frog
To tell your name the livelong day
To an admiring bog!
from “advertise” to “banish” there’s a 180-degree difference. (I did not read all 6 pages of the comments to this poem, and this might have been posted already. If so, I’m sorry. Could anyone comment on why there would be various versions of her poetry?
I think that it means being a nobody is important and you shouldn’t advertise yourself. Being a somebody is horrible because you have to live in the public eye living as someone your not entertaining people who don’t really matter anyway.
I really like this poem. It shows a lot about Emily. This poem refers to her time at the college Mt. Holyoke. One of her teachers, Mary Lyons, split the class into three groups; the hopers, the Christians, and the no-hopers. Hopers meaning people that wanted to be Christians and no-hopers being people that did not; they minded their own business. Emily was a no-hoper. People did not accept that at Mt. Holyoke college, and she was considered a nobody. She was fine with that though, she didn’t like to get out, kept to herself. She didn’t want to be a somebody. Somebodies got all the attention. This is what Emily means by “how public like a frog.” Frogs are the noisy animals in a pond. They are sort of saying “I’m the Frog!! I’m the best!! I’m the Frog!! I’m the best!!” and when do they come out? Livelong June…
who does she mean “they” in this poem? Is this somebody, famous people? if yes, why do they banish her as she isn’t at their same point? why do public dislike “a frog”?
The frogs bit is referrring to the fact tha frogs are usually the loudest of the bogs, hence they croak a lot and everyone hears them
I think that Emily Dickinson did a good job on her poem. In that poem she is tring to tell us that we are not no body, because we are somebody.
I dont lke it. im not tryin to be mean but i did not just get it, at all.
does anyone know what, “How public – like a Frog –
To tell one’s name – the livelong June –
To an admiring Bog!” means???
Very positive. Dickenson’s way of placing questions in print albiet in poem is worth pondering. It gives life! Life full of allusions.
I think she sounds very depressed. I feel sorry for her. Does anybody know when Emily Dickinson wrote this poem?
It means that if you want to be somebody you don’t have to look for name,promotion,etc.
This poem is very likely to the “Rumi”‘s which said I found being somebody in being nobody.
this is, certainly, an escape from vanality of this materialism. she has reached a higher level…spiritualism maybe.
she compares somebody with frogs! it is easy to be somebody, but being nobody is too much harder…
good poem
I was introduced to this poem when I was 10, and whenever I’m feeling low, I write it out somewhere and I’ll read and read and cry over it.
I can really relate to it and someone–well, Emily Dickinson, actually understood what it felt like and how it was to a nobody and used the status of what she was, a poet, to encourage other nobodies around the world, namely, me. No matter what and when or how many years later, it will still be my favourite poem.
Anyway, it’s been 5 years since I first knew this poem.
Jennifer, I was at another website and someone mentioned the poem as you have stated, but that version is called Banish us. Banish replaces one’s with you and June with Day. Also the forth line in I’m nobody reads as follows Don’t tell!! they’d adverise-you know! Versus your version that uses the word bansih. I would really like to know what others think about there being multi versions of the same poem. I also read that Emily would frequently send her poems to friends then change the poem based on their feedback. I think this is a great example where this could have happened.
I think that her poem is saying that you need to be yourself and not let society try to mold into everyone else. Go Emily!!
In the poem, “I’m nobody!Who are you?”, the direct meaning will always be ‘be yourself’ and ‘don’t let anyone try and change you because being you is unique.’
But she is already making it seem that people who don’t fit in with one group, can fit in another. Dickinson had wanted to be cut off from the world, for reasons unknown. She always did have a bad taste in men.(all the men she liked were married, and none of them wanted to leave their wives for her.)
Emily Dickinson is trying to say to people all over the world that the people who are nobodies are the most unoique peole and that just because some one has no friends or has metal problems doesnt mean they aren’t somebody because there a nobody…the ones who arnt popular or cool in the begining if there life become a person later that everybody wants to be around. no one wants to hang around with someone who gets you into trouble or does bad things to them or others.
In the past, I always want to be somebody. so every time i’m chasing. Now, I know I’m unique, I needn’t to be somebody. Just to be myself. I’m God’s master peace, For Him I’m somebody.
i love all of emily dickinson’s poetry… especially this one because i can really relate to it. I also like what the person that posted before said ” nobody is what everyone really is” that is so true…