Emily Dickinson

Growth of Man like growth

GROWTH of Man like growth
Of Nature

Gravitates within

Scientific term used metaphorically—growth pulls inward by its own force, not pushed by external pressure. Self-directed, not externally driven.

Gravitates within,
Atmosphere and sun confirm it

Atmosphere and sun confirm

External conditions can only verify growth that's already happening internally. They don't cause it—they reveal it.

But it stirs alone.
Each its difficult ideal
Must achieve itself,

Solitary prowess

Prowess usually means battlefield skill or public achievement. Here it's private, invisible—redefining heroism as internal work.

Through the solitary prowess
Of a silent life.
Effort is the sole condition,
Patience of itself—
Patience of opposing forces,

Patience of opposing forces

Not just patience *with* obstacles—patience *of* them. You must be as patient as the forces resisting you are relentless.

And distinct belief.
Looking on is the department
Of its audience,

Transaction

Commercial/legal term for the actual work of growth. The deal gets done alone—no witness, no helper, no face watching.

But transaction is assisted
By no countenance.
Source Wikipedia Poetry Foundation

Reading Notes

Dickinson's Grammar of Isolation

The poem's central claim is radical: "transaction is assisted / By no countenance." Growth happens without any face watching, helping, or witnessing. Dickinson uses "countenance" (face, approval, support) to mean all three at once—the work of becoming yourself gets no outside help.

Notice how she builds to this through scientific language: "gravitates," "atmosphere," "confirm." She's treating psychological growth like botany or physics—observable, lawful, but fundamentally solitary. The external world can only "confirm" what's already stirring inside. Sun and air don't make the seed grow; they just make visible what the seed is already doing to itself.

The poem's structure reinforces this. Each stanza narrows focus: from Nature's growth (universal), to "Each its difficult ideal" (individual), to "Effort is the sole condition" (the lonely work), to "Looking on is the department / Of its audience" (you're on your own). The audience can watch, but watching isn't participating. The "transaction"—the actual exchange, the real work—happens in private.

The Economics of Self-Making

Dickinson uses commercial vocabulary in unexpected ways. "Transaction" typically means a business deal, something requiring two parties. Here, it's a solo act. "Department" (a division of labor or responsibility) assigns spectators their role: they get to look, nothing more. The poem's economic language suggests growth is work, not magic—but work no one can do for you or even witness properly.

"Difficult ideal" is the key phrase. Not an easy goal or a handed-down standard, but something each person must "achieve itself"—grammatically odd ("achieve itself" not "achieve it"), suggesting the ideal does the work through you, or you become identical with your aim. The "solitary prowess" required isn't physical strength but the stamina to keep working when no one's watching, when there's "no countenance" to encourage or approve.

The repetition of "Patience" (appears twice in one stanza) isn't accidental. You need patience with yourself ("Patience of itself") and patience equal to the forces resisting you ("Patience of opposing forces"). The "distinct belief" that ends the stanza is what you need when there's no external confirmation—belief that stands apart, alone, distinct from what others see or validate.