In this presentation, I want to explain the poem entitled “The Lightning is a Yellow Fork “ written by EmilyDickinson.

1. EMILY DICKINSON’S THE
LIGHTNING IS A YELLOW FORK
ANALYSIS
Yolanda Ayu Belia
13020114120003

2. Abstract
This paper, the writer tries to analyze a
poem, entitled “The Lightning is a Yellow
Fork “ written by Emily Dickinson. The
purpose of this writing is to analyze the poem
intrinsically. This research uses Imagery
(Visual Imagery) and Symbol as a Figurative
Language.
Keywords: Emily Dickinson, Visual Imagery,
Symbol.

3. 1. Introduction
The poem “The Lightning is A Yellow Fork” by Emily
Dickinson uses lightning, a common thing, to question the
existence of God. Dickinson says that lightning is like a fork that
is dropped from the sky inadvertently.
2. Methodology
a. To analyze the symbol in Emily Dickinson, The Lightning is a
Yellow Fork.
b. To analyze the imagery in Emily Dickinson, The Lightning is a
Yellow Fork.
3. Research Object
Research objective are the result sought by the researcher
at the end of the research process, i.e. what the reseacher will be
able to achieve at the end of the research study.

4. 4. Biography and Poetry
In this part contains the biography of Emily Dickinson and the poem.
a. Biography of Emily Dickinson.
Emily Dickinson was born on December 10, 1830, in Amherst,
Massachusetts. She attended Mount Holyoke Female Seminary in South
Hadley, but only for one year. Throughout her life, she seldom left her home
and visitors were few. The people with whom she did come in contact,
however, had an enormous impact on her poetry. She was particularly stirred
by the Reverend Charles Wadsworth, whom she first met on a trip to
Philadelphia. He left for the West Coast shortly after a visit to her home in
1860, and some critics believe his departure gave rise to the heartsick flow of
verse from Dickinson in the years that followed.While it is certain that he was
an important figure in her life, it is not clear that their relationship was
romantic—she called him “my closest earthly friend.” Other possibilities for
the unrequited love that was the subject of many of Dickinson’s poems include
Otis P. Lord, a Massachusetts Supreme Court judge, and Samuel Bowles,
editor of the Springfield Republican
Taken from: https://www.poets.org/poetsorg/poet/emilydickinson&usg.

5. b. The Poem
The Lightning Is A Yellow Fork
By : Emily Dickinson
The Lightning is a yellow Fork
From Tables in the sky
By inadvertent fingers dropt
The awful Cutlery
Of mansions never quite disclosed
And never quite concealed
The Apparatus of the Dark
To ignorance revealed.

6. 5. Discussion
Discussion of the elements here is focussed on the aspect of
intrinsic elements.
a. Symbol
Symbol is one of intrinsic element that is often in poetry.
There is definitions of symbol according to Laurence Perrine
(1969:83): “A symbol may be roughly defined as something that
means more than what it is.
Stanza 1 Line 1
The Lightning is a yellow Fork
In this stanza has two symbol that will be discussed. The
first one is The Lightning, it is simply referring to the things like
lightning only offer us glimpses of something that may never be
completely revealed. The second is a yellow Fork. It is just a
dinner fork that has a yellow color from the house/ the mansions.
But, Dickinson might be taking that old phrase about a "fork of
lightning" literally. We usually think of lightning as majestic.

7. Stanza 1 Line 2
From Tables in the sky
This line, sky means that above, above the table
and it is the fork in. Again we look upward and imagine
"Tables in the sky" it might the fork has fallen from
somewhere, right? In this case, the fork has fallen from
the dinning table.
Stanza 1 Line 4
The awful Cutlery
In this line, the cutlery seems to belong to an
enormous, not-quite-visible household somewhere up
there. Awful Cutlery, may also means "awful" in its
original sense of awe- or dread-inspiring. This is the
most amazing and terrifying fork.

8. Stanza 2 Line 1 and 2
Of mansions never quite disclosed
And never quite concealed
In this stanza, the mansions is a mysterious house
up in the sky, which is neither seen nor unseen. Never
quite disclosed and never quite concealed suggests that
we're always aware that it's there, but we can't see it.
The word "mansions" suggests to us that it's a
mysterious dwelling places.
Stanza 2 Line 3
The Apparatus of the Dark
This line, seems to indicate symbol of the
workings of the sky. We can take this to refer to the
literal "dark," as in the night sky. This half-revealed
"Apparatus," or the shady framework of the mansions.

9. b. Imagery
The meaning of Imagery according to X.J
Kennedy in Literature : An Introduction to Fiction,
Poetry, and Drama (1979:464) “A word or sequence of
words that refers to any sensory experience.”. This
introductory section is designed to acquaint students
with the various types of images—visual, auditory,
olfactory, gustatory, tactile, kinetic, and kinesthetic—all
of which account for the appeal and validity of poetry.
There are several type of imagery , but this study will
only focus on visual imagery.

10. Stanza 1 Line 1 and 2
The Lightning is a yellow Fork
From Tables in the sky
Both of his lines are a visual imagery. Here, the readers
can imagine the striking lightning as a yellow fork. Imagine it's a
dark and stormy night. You hear thunder rumbling and then see a
sudden flash as a golden dinner fork falls from the sky and spears
the ground.
Stanza 1 Line 4
The awful Cutlery
This line contains a visual imagery. The readers are able
to imagine how awful the cutlery . We're starting to get a feeling
that this poem isn't just about lightning being huge and fork-like,
but maybe as a symbol of something even bigger and more awe-
inspiring.

11. Stanza 2 Line 1,2,3,4
Of mansions never quite disclosed
And never quite concealed
The Apparatus of the Dark
To ignore revealed.
All of this stanza, contains a visual imagery . The
"mansions" described in this poem are, in fact, barely described at
all. The second stanza evasively talks around the big houses in
the sky. It hints at them but doesn't dare describe them. The
readers can make a conclusion, they're (The mansions) not for us
to see. We get glimpses of the "Apparatus" of divine power, but
we aren't allowed to know anything more specific about it. The
"mansions" are framed as shady, obscure, and half-seen, and we
remain mostly "ignorant" of their true nature.

12. 6. Conclusion
The Lightning is a yellow Fork is a poem written
by Emily Dickinson. This poem is interesting because the poet
sees a bolt of lightning and reflects on how the bolt is like a
fork. This leads her into an imaginative meditation on this piece
of awe-inspiring cutlery: if the lightning is a fork, it falls from
some mysterious table, dropped accidentally by some mysterious
hand, in some mysterious house. We can't ever see who's doing
the dropping, or where they live, but the glimpse of the falling
"fork," the poem concludes, reveals to us (poor, ignorant humans
that we are) the fact that these greater powers are out there.
7. References
Perrine, Laurence. 1969. Sound And Sense, An
Introduction to Poetry, Third Edition.USA:Harcourt, Brace and
World, Inc.
Kennedy, X.J. 1979. Literature : An Introduction to
Fiction, Poetry, and Drama.USA. Little Brown & Company