John Coghlan Professor Nolan English II Much Madness is divinest Sense While at the United States <a href="/keyword/naval-academy/" >naval academy</a> , we are often told we are public figures and the perception we give those around us, is the reality of the <a href="/keyword/naval-academy/" >naval academy</a> that they take away. Indeed it may be, for how can we disapprove of another's opinion and how they see, feel, or think? It is this phenomena that <a href="/keyword/emily-dickinson/" >emily dickinson</a> writes about in her poem, Much Madness is Divinest Sense. Throughout her poem, Mrs. Dickinson uses paradox, overstatement, and irony to strongly express her theme that it is those who retain their own uniqueness that are truly normal and not those who only follow what the rest of society does. <a href="/keyword/emily-dickinson/" >emily dickinson</a> 's opening line, &quot;Much Madness is divinest Sense- To a discerning Eye- Much Sense- the starkest madness- Tis the majority,&quot; is a literary paradox, an apparent contradiction that is somewhat true. On one hand, it makes no sense for both Madness to be divine and sense to be the starkest madness, as these words have entirely opposite meanings, so that there can be no parallelism between them. However, when examining this paradox it is necessary to note the words &quot;discerning&quot; and &quot;majority&quot; following the contrasting statements, &quot;Much Madness is divinest Sense...Much Sense-the starkest Madness,&quot; that constitute the paradox, for these two words are what give truth to this apparent contradiction. The word discerning essentially portrays to us the connotation that those who believe that, &quot;Much Madness is divinest sense&quot; are an elitist group, that they are more select than the majority. The connotation of majority adds a complimentary role to that of discerning for in a majority we only think of average people, we think of nobody unique or different. In this way, &quot;Majority&quot; works with &quot;Much Madness to a divinest sense,&quot; as an elitist style of thinking, for it plays upon our presumption that the majority is ignorant, uneducated, and not at all unique. It is essentially these two words that give us the truth in making these two contrasting statements a paradox instead of an oxymoron. While the words reason and majority bring out our paradoxical theme, the overstatements found both in this opening stanza and the rest of the poem allows us to understand the theme that the writer is expressing. Often, Emily Dickenson differentiates and changes the meaning of the poem with using words with connotations that are favorable to her intended meaning. After adding &quot;in this, as All, prevail,&quot; to emphasize her point on majority dominance being completely indistinctive and unexceptional, she deliberately chooses &quot;assents&quot; instead of a similar word such as obedient which has a meaning that could take the same place in this sentence. This serves her purpose for, while &quot;assents&quot; may have a parallel meaning in this poem, it also means to give in and therefore it's tone is much more apathetic and hopeless than a demand to follow the rules. Similarly, &quot;demur&quot; gives off the impression of a slight variation, instead of a deliberate isolation. Therefore, it clearly makes it seem ridiculous to to be be, &quot;straightway dangerous- And handled with a Chain,&quot; when we merely demurred from a rule or societal precept.. <a href="/keyword/emily-dickinson/" >emily dickinson</a> s's theme becomes that when we are too cookie cutter like, all following the same societal mold we are not fully human and unique and it is then that we are truly insane. She has an elitist notion that those who are in touch with their eccentricities, or &quot;much madness&quot; are in recognition of their full range of feelings and differences which makes them saner than the majority. This expresses the irony Mrs. Dickinson's feels in that those whom the public, or the &quot;Majority&quot;, feel are sane are truly the complete opposite of those who are insane. While, these &quot;mad&quot; are fully recognizant of their differences and celebrate them, those who cannot recognizes these differences and only follow the majority, or &quot;Much sense,&quot; therefore having, &quot;the starkest Madness,&quot; are truly insane. Throught the strong ironic overstatements <a href="/keyword/emily-dickinson/" >emily dickinson</a> makes throughout her poem, Much Madness is divinest Sense, she betrays an obvious theme that she feels the public labels people who acknowledge their originality as insane, when she finds those who unquestioningly conform to be more offensive. As a known recluse, this poem obviously reflects Mrs. Dickinson's personal perception of the public. She effectively uses paradox, overstatement, and irony to portray that we should never conform to somebody else's values, but rather form our own.