The Barbaric Yawp Project

Emily Dickinson

1830-1886

Emily Dickinson presents a very soulful way of approaching truth--hardly a barbaric yawp in the outward sense of Walt Whitman’s “barbaric shout over the roofs of the world”, but perhaps its own kind of barbaric yawp in its inward depth and ferocity. Dickinson’s “tell all the truth but tell it slant” offers a stark contrast to Donald Trump’s Truth Social or the truth of George Orwell’s 1984. Dickinson only published 10-12 poems in her lifetime of 1830-1886 but almost 1800 were discovered by her sister on her death and eventually found their way into publication in 1955. It is both amazing and fitting that her truth only emerged fully in print almost seventy years after her death while Trump’s truth as tweets is delivered to us almost every moment of every day. The timing of the truth telling underlines the difference between Dickinson’s form of truth and Trump’s brand of truth. Listen to this “channeled” version of Emily Dickinson’s truth about Trump’s truth and then read the short essay on “Truth in Emily Dickinson’s Poetry, Donald Trump’s Truth Social, and George Orwell’s 1984” which follows the written text of the video.

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This video is an AI-generated active imagination of what might be said to us today based on the written historical record.

A Quiet Barbaric Yawp

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I tell the Truth — but not by force — The Nation favors louder proof — Flags — and the stomp of Certainty — I choose — another method — Truth enters — quietly — Like Light — through a seam — You say — the Crowd decides the Right — I answer — Conscience does — They call it Madness — to doubt the Roar — They call it Treason — to think alone — Much Madness — is divinest Sense — when Numbers fail — Power loves Display — You build your Walls of Sound — and call them Strength — I place one Word — and wait — Because the Truth — delivered straight — would wound — So I speak — obliquely — to spare what still can hear — This is not Retreat — It is — Refusal — The Soul — remains — its own.

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