I'm Nobody! Who are You?

Recently I came across a reference to Emily Dickinson’s poem “I'm Nobody! Who are You?” in a novel I was reading. I first read the poem years ago but had forgotten about it. It was a joy to become reacquainted.  

In rediscovering the short poem, I learned that it has two forms. The poet’s original words were apparently edited for publication after her death. (Why would anyone do that to a poem?) Here are the poet’s original words, with her original capitalizations and punctuation. 

I’m Nobody! Who are you? 

Are you – Nobody – too? 

Then there’s a pair of us! 

Don't tell! they'd advertise – you know! 

How dreary – to be – Somebody! 

How public – like a Frog – 

To tell one’s name – the livelong June – 

To an admiring Bog! 

The poem is often interpreted as an ode to anonymity by the notoriously reclusive poet. It’s message resonates today with those who do not like our celebrity-obsessed culture that has produced internet influencers, television “personalities,” and “reality TV stars” who are famous for nothing more than being famous! 

I sense a deeper spiritual meaning in the poem. I might be reading my own interpretation into the poem. In fact I am sure I am. But isn’t that what poems are meant to do? The meaning of a poem is not just what the poet intended, but also what it elicits in the reader. For me it elicits awareness of my spiritual identity.  

I am Nobody. No body - not a body. Not a self – no self. Buddhists call it anatta. Jesus phrased it, “Whoever seeks to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will save it.”

My deepest identity is not a name that I endlessly croak to other peepers in the pond. For bog dwellers life is an endless June during which one repeats one’s cultural identity whenever asked, “Who are you?”  

The typical reply to this question includes name, family, vocation, gender, sexual orientation, ethnic background, nationality, social status, political party, education, geography, and a dozen other societal identifiers. With these cultural identities we set ourselves apart from others.  

Personal identity is a fiction fabricated by culture. It is no more permanent than the shape of a cloud in the sky. Our name was chosen by our parents and reinforced by society throughout our lives.

Our families train us in other aspects of our identity. We accept some labels and reject others. We accumulate other personal characteristics during our brief lifetimes. These societal tags are not what we are. They are not what we were before birth, and they are not what we are after death.  

The Zen koan asks, “What is your original face before you were born?” It is a very different question than “Where will you spend eternity?” asked by the frogs in the Christian bog. Most pictures of heaven are froggish fantasies that we will someday be Somebody – complete with a celestial mansion located on a street of gold - even if today we feel like nobody.  

How dreary to be Somebody! The Good News is that I am Nobody! How about you? Are you Nobody too? Unlike Dickinson I don’t mind advertising the Good News of Nobody, although most will not believe me anyway. The tyranny of the self is too strong in most people. In any case I am Nobody. Who are you?