Lyric Poem · Nature

Nobody knows this little Rose

by Emily Dickinson

Nobody knows this little Rose —

It might a pilgrim be

Did I not take it from the ways

And lift it up to thee.

Only a Bee will miss it —

Only a Butterfly,

Hastening from far journey —

On its breast to lie —

Only a Bird will wonder —

Only a Breeze will sigh —

Ah Little Rose — how easy

For such as thee to die!

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“Nobody knows this little Rose” by Emily Dickinson — quilloak.com/poems/nobody-knows-this-little-rose

Quick facts

Poem: Nobody knows this little Rose
Poet: Emily Dickinson
Length: 12 lines
Form: Lyric Poem
Themes: Nature, Death & Loss, Sad

Craft notes

How this poem works

Measured from the text on this page, not copied from a summary. Counts are approximate: syllables and rhymes come from the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary, which models General American English, so dialect, older pronunciation, and performance can all change what you hear.

Shape: 12 lines · one 12-line stanza
Line length: Lines run 6-8 syllables (median 7). No single length dominates, which is normal once elision and contraction are in play.

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Text, source & rights

A traceable edition

Full-text display is based on the committed source record and a United States term-expiry review.

Author record: Emily Dickinson1830–1886
Source record: PoetryDBNobody knows this little Rose by emily-dickinson, PoetryDB transcription
Display decision: Full text · United States · reviewed 2026-07-18
Publication record: Not recorded in the imported source
Text fingerprint: SHA-256 d533ba7b480654a6…
Editorial handling: Whitespace and stanza breaks normalized for web display; no material wording change recorded.

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Lyric Poem Nature Death & Loss Sad

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