Very little is known of Emily Elizabeth Dickinson as the American poet always kept to herself and lived a life of solitude. She was born on 10th December 1830 at Amherst, Massachusetts to Edward and Emily Norcross Dickinson. She had an older brother, Austin, and younger sister named Lavinia.

From 1834 – 1847, Emily Dickinson studied at the Amherst Academy, an academic institution that was co-founded by her grandfather, Samuel Fowler Dickinson. In 1847, she studied at the Hadley Female Seminary (now known as Mount Holyoke College) but returned to Amherst only after a year, and began her life of solitude.

After returning from the Seminary, Emily withdrew from all social contact and refused to entertain guests. She chose to dress herself only in white and spent most of her time inside her room. She started writing poems at around this time. Her initial forays were conventional but later on, she experimented until she developed her own unique style.

The 1860s contributed immensely to Emily Dickinson’s writing style and content. The US Civil War broke out in 1861; her closest friends (and were also rumored to be objects of her affection) Samuel Bowles moved to Europe for health reasons, and Charles Wadsworth was relocated to San Francisco. In addition, she also had a persistent eye trouble. Although these years were very tumultuous for Dickinson, this could also be considered as the most productive period of her life. During this time, Emily Dickinson wrote around 800 poems.

Emily Dickinson never married and died on May 15, 1886. Her poems were published posthumously by her sister, Lavinia in 1886. During her life, only seven poems were published, but Emily Dickinson has penned almost 2,000 poems.