In episode 3 Dickinson‘s third and final season, Emily is facing the challenge of balancing the needs of Sue, of her family, and finding time to write her poetry. Will Emily be able to meet the needs of everyone, or will the poet need to finally start choosing a side as Austin predicted? Titled “The Soul Has Bandaged Moments,” here’s a recap of what took place.
“Not Long for the World” | Emily Dickinson is still simmering on her last conversation with Frazer Stearns (Will Pullen) before he left to join Union forces of the Civil War. When they had last spoken, Frazer likened Emily’s bravery to face truth to that of Dante facing the Inferno. Emily goes into her father’s office and pulls down Mr. Dickinson’s (Toby Huss) copy of The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri from the bookshelf. She opens the book to its first volume, “Inferno”. Emily’s moment of contemplation is swiftly interrupted when Mr. Dickinson, chipper as all get-out, steps into the room. Much to Emily’s surprise, her father is dressed, perky, and feeling better than ever after just recently suffering a heart attack.
Mr. Dickinson has come out of his bed rest with an important realization about his mortality. Grasping, now that his time on Earth is limited, he is springing into manic action to make sure that the world will never forget the name “Edward Dickinson” after he passes. This means getting his estate in order, sending off his essays to a copyist, and donating money to New England’s enriching institutions.
Emily addresses the conflict that has arisen between Mr. Dickinson and her brother Austin (Adrian Blake Enscoe), but her father isn’t upset with Austin after all. In fact, Mr. Dickinson acknowledges that Austin is going through a difficult time and he won’t hold that against him. Emily is thrilled to hear this and is optimistic that the Dickinson family’s trouble will soon be resolved.
Here to Help | Betty (Amanda Warren), the Amherst seamstress, is fitting Lavinia Dickinson’s (Anna Baryshnikov) mourning dress when Emily comes downstairs and shares the news about their father not being angry with Austin. “The Dickinson war is over,” Emily says excitedly. Lavinia reminds her that while their family may have found peace, the Civil War is still very active. To extend aid to Union soldiers, Lavinia is hosting their usual sewing circle, renaming it “The Amherst Ladies’ Aid Society,” to make bandages for the soldiers, and she has recruited the help of Betty. Emily’s help is also needed.
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Betty shares with Emily and Lavinia that she is delighted to be a part of the sewing circle but she won’t be able to stay late. She is hosting a friend whom she is helping to write a memoir for, a project that has helped take her mind off the absence of her husband Henry (Chinaza Uche). Betty and her daughter Helen haven’t received a letter from Henry for over a month, and Betty has grown worried for Henry’s safety. Emily reassures her that she and her daughter will hear from him and that Henry is safe.
During a moment of calm, Mrs. Dickinson (Jane Krakowski) bursts through the front door of the Dickinson home enraged after a visit with her daughter-in-law Sue (Ella Hunt) and her week-old grandson. Mrs. Dickinson is angry with Sue because Sue isn’t allowing her to hold and bond with her grandson. Emily really is the only person Sue listens to so Mrs. Dickinson requests that Emily convince Sue to allow her time to bond with the baby. And so, the tasks continue to pile on, preventing Emily from taking time for herself to write her poetry.
Bumblebee | Emily stands before Sue’s bedroom door nervous to enter. “Is it true, dear Sue? Are there two?” Emily ponders before knocking. In an unwelcoming tone, Sue tells her guest to leave her alone. “Sue, it’s me,” Emily tells her and immediately Sue’s tone brightens. “Come in, please. Come in,” Sue says. Sue and her son rest comfortably in bed. The baby has just been nursed is sleeping soundly. Sue asks Emily if she’d like to hold him but Emily is reluctant. “Great. You don’t even want to touch the baby, and your mother refuses to give him back,” says Sue disappointed. Emily asks Sue what happened that morning with Mrs. Dickinson and Sue explains that Emily’s mother has been overbearing with her son’s care and Mrs. Dickinson doesn’t respect Sue’s boundaries. Sue agrees to give Mrs. Dickinson more time with her son but in due time. First, Sue wants to enjoy her son as a “Gilbert” before he must become a “Dickinson”.
Emily sits close to Sue and the baby. Referring to herself as “Uncle Emily”, she tells her little nephew a sweet rhyme: “Uncle Emily knows a man who drives a coach like a thimble. Turns the wheel all day with his heel.” Sue imagines, again, a life in which she and Emily raise her son as a family. Emily declines the thought of it, saying it’s impossible to raise the baby together. Sue probes Emily, asking her if it is actually impossible or if Emily just simply doesn’t want to. Instead of giving Sue an answer, Emily changes the subject to ask where Austin is. He is gone again after a night of drinking.
Sue asks Emily to have dinner with her and her baby. Emily tells her that she already has a commitment with Lavinia to participate in the sewing circle that evening. Once again, Sue is disappointed with Emily. “Why do you always do this? Choose your family over me,” Sue says. Emily remarks that she isn’t choosing anyone over anybody else, and Sue tells her that that is exactly the issue. For once she’d like to feel chosen by Emily.
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What Emily would really like to do is have time for herself to finally write, but her loved ones continue to need her help. “Life gets messy like that,” Sue tells her. “There are poems that I want to write for you,” Emily responds. In the past, Emily’s poems were enough to suffice Sue’s needs from Emily, but now, Sue needs more. Sue needs all of Emily.
Get Your Whipstitch On | The sewing circle is off to a good start, although, the latest gossip is being sewed quicker than anyone can stitch a bandage wrap together. The group talk about Jane Humphrey’s (Gus Birney) move to Vietnam, Sue refusing to allow Mrs. Dickinson to hold her grandson, and the ongoing war.
Emily struggles to sew her bandage roll. Betty instructs her to knit instead, but Emily can’t knit either. Emily grows frustrated. She isn’t going to help anyone by sitting in a sewing circle. What she needs to do is write her poetry. Emily believes that her poetry is going to help in a way that bandages can’t. Words can help heal the wounds of people’s hearts. Toshiaki (Kevin Yee) is in disagreement, however. He argues that even poet Walt Whitman isn’t publishing poetry in wartimes. Instead, Whitman is serving as a nurse for the Union. Abiah (Allegra Heart) says otherwise. She and her husband run a Union newspaper and poetry is a regular publication. Union soldiers find comfort in poetry, even on their deathbed. Abby (Sophie Zucker) on the other hand, takes a more radical stance. She believes that people should be protesting the war on the streets. Abby adds that women should be given equal rights to vote and participate as soldiers in the war.
Betty comes in with a final argument, explaining that Henry’s writing tore her family apart but later stitched it back together when he began writing their daughter Helen after he left. Betty tells the group that she believes in the power of writing. “Sometimes it’s all we have,” she states.
Emily is struck with an important realization with Betty’s statement about writing. She accepts that she might be unable to sew or fix her family’s issues, but she can write. “The best thing I can do for the world is locked myself away and write poetry,” Emily tells everyone.
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Betty disagrees with Emily, explaining that Emily’s poetry won’t do anyone any good if Emily can’t face the mess of the world: “Writing that shuts real life out is as good as dead.”
Austin and his friend George (Samuel Farnsworth) interrupt the sewing circle when they arrive home after a bar fight. Austin is drunk again and now injured. Mrs. Dickinson swoops in for the rescue, using the soldiers’ bandages to fix up her son’s cut on his leg.
“My Heart Belongs to Someone Else” | Emily finally gains some peace and quiet at her writing desk. Out her window and across the yard is Sue’s bedroom. Emily can hear her baby nephew crying in the distance. Someone knocks on her door. It’s George with a copy of “The Atlantic” with an article that provides advice for young poets. “Letter to a Young Contributor,” written by abolitionist Thomas Wentworth Higginson.
Emily tells George about her insecurities surrounding writing and her contributions to her loved ones and the war. She wonders if she’d have a greater impact doing something other than writing poetry. George reminds Emily that her greatest gift is writing and that she must continue. George misinterprets Emily’s gratitude and reception to his words and leans in to kiss her. Emily stops George immediately and shares with him that her heart belongs to someone else.
“I’m Here and That’s All That Matters” | Henry is shown arriving at a Union camp where the Union’s first regiment of Black soldiers reside. He is joining the regimen to fight the Civil War under the leadership of Higginson.
The World Will Know Truth | Betty returns home to find her house guest and friend sporting a beautiful red dress in the mirror in her living room. Her friend turns out to be the one and only, “great Sojourner Truth (Ziwe), abolitionist, evangelist, fighter for suffrage – “. Sojourner is also the first Black woman to win a lawsuit against a White man in court. Betty has been transcribing her memoir for the last three nights.
A Verse Alive | Emily has been inspired by Betty’s statement about writing and the need to face life’s mess. She decides to write Higginson:
“Mr. Higginson, are you too deeply occupied to say if my Verse is alive?”
Dickinson Season 3 is now available to stream on Apple TV+.