Emily Dickinson

I reason, earth is short

Summary


"I reason, earth is short" is a compact Emily Dickinson poem that tests the comfort of logic against the weight of mortality. Across three brief stanzas, the speaker calmly lists life's brevity, absolute anguish, inevitable decay and the hope of a heavenly balance. Each argument ends with the same unsettling refrain, "But what of that?" The repeated question leaves the speaker's certainty trembling, and it invites readers to weigh reason, doubt and faith for themselves.

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I REASON, earth is short,
And anguish absolute,
And many hurt;
But what of that?

I reason, we could die:
The best vitality
Cannot excel decay;
But what of that?

I reason that in heaven
Somehow, it will be even,
Some new equation given;
But what of that?

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Credits

Emily Dickinson was a 19th-century American poet from Amherst, Massachusetts, known for her short lines, dashes and unflinching meditations on death and faith. This poem shows her signature habit of turning a compact argument into an open question.