848.1864.Who Giants know, with lesser Men
Who Giants know, with lesser Men
Are incomplete, and shy—
For Greatness, that is ill at ease
In minor Company—
A Smaller, could not be perturbed—
The Summer Gnat displays—
Unconscious that his single Fleet
Do not comprise the skies— ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..
ED suggested two alternate phrases, {in curly brackets}:
Line 3: “For Greatness, that is ill at ease” {“ill composed}”
I prefer ED’s original phrase because it’s familiar and easy to understand;
Line 4: “In minor Company” {“With other quality}”
I prefer ED’s original phrase because it exemplifies ED’s judgmental trait, pejorative but honest. “With other quality“ is vague, even by ED’s standards.
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My prose biographical interpretation of F848:
Who Giants know, with lesser Men
Are incomplete, and shy—
For Greatness, that is ill at ease
In minor Company—
S1
If you know a genius, you will find them unsocialized and shy. Geniuses feel uncomfortable when associating with less gifted souls.
Stanza 2
A Smaller, could not be perturbed—
The Summer Gnat displays—
Unconscious that his single Fleet
Do not comprise the skies—
S2
A person who is average would not be uncomfortable in the presence of genius because they would have no comprehension of how far beyond average thinking that genius goes. An average person thinks their little-town universe is all there is in life.
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ED is speaking of what she knows. Her sister, Vinnie, said Emily” had to think – she was the only one of us who had that to do. Father believed; and mother loved; and Austin had Amherst; and I had the family to take care of.” (Bingham 1967).
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Reference
Bingham, M T. 1967. Emily Dickinson’s home: The early years as revealed in family correspondence and reminiscences. Pp. 413-414.