"Revolution is the Pod," and "The name -- of it -- is 'Autumn'"

These two poems relate to the Civil War although from two differing views because of the times they were written. “The name – of it –is Autumn,” was written before the war in 1862 and, “Revolution is the Pod,” after the war in 1866.

In the poem, “The name – of it –is Autumn,” the seasonal suggestions refer to Civil War themes that lead up to the Civil War. “When Winds- upset the Basin, And spill the Scarlet Rain,” depicts “the Basin” as being the upset southerners or confederates who were angry at the northerners or the “Scarlet Rain”, and the “spilling” to which it refers could very well be the Civil War beginning to unravel and all of these disagreements resulting in fighting breaking out. However the author at this time, 1862, could not have known for certain that a great Civil War amongst our own nation and on our own lands could have ever occurred. That is why the author does a great job of putting the audience in that time period, and what things were like up until the war. In Dickinson’s, “Revolution is the Pod,” similar relations to the Civil War are noticed in the lines, “Left inactive on the Stalk, All it’s Purple fled, Revolution shakes it for, Test if it be dead.” She refers to the post-war actions as being “inactive” and “purple fled” meaning no more bloodshed. She mentions the, “Revolution shakes it for,” in attempts to, “Test if it be dead,” meaning all the fighting which no has come to pass, was necessary to purify this nation of any wrong directions that our country could have been heading. Perhaps the reason why, “The name – of it –is Autumn,” wasn’t published until after the war, was because the author felt that the country was already in a horrible state and didn’t want to add to the chaos which was currently circulating, and in no way wanted to be any bit responsible for contributing to all the fighting and death involved in war.


Also another key thing to notice is the color schemes that the authors refer to in both poems. The “Purple” or blood, “the Scarlet Rain,” the Reddish brown leaves of Autumn as, “Russet Base,” all are mentioned in these poems in relation to the Civil War and the season at which both poems take place. Other than just describing the setting of these two poems, perhaps the authors felt that the Autumn-like season was an excellent way of conveying their feelings of the Civil War with many vibrant colors and seasonal imagery available such as the above listed, to help disguise their true intent of each poem.