Lyric Poem · Nature

The fascinating chill that music leaves

by Emily Dickinson

Is Earth's corroboration

Of Ecstasy's impediment —

'Tis Rapture's germination

In timid and tumultuous soil

A fine — estranging creature —

To something upper wooing us

But not to our Creator —

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“The fascinating chill that music leaves” by Emily Dickinson — quilloak.com/poems/the-fascinating-chill-that-music-leaves

Quick facts

Poem: The fascinating chill that music leaves
Poet: Emily Dickinson
Length: 8 lines
Form: Lyric Poem, Short Poems
Themes: Nature, Short

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: 8 lines · one 8-line stanza
Line length: Lines run 7-10 syllables (median 8), consistent with tetrameter. 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: PoetryDBThe fascinating chill that music leaves 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 77f845cf39a41c73…
Editorial handling: Whitespace and stanza breaks normalized for web display; no material wording change recorded.

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Lyric Poem Short Poems Nature Short

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