Scholar identifies a secret love affair behind Emily Dickinson's famous poem

Scholar Rebecca Patterson identified Kate Scott Anthon as the woman who inspired a period of intense emotional distress and prolific poetry for Emily Dickinson.

Patterson proposed this theory in 1951 after researching archives and records. The research suggests that Dickinson experienced a profound "terror" in 1861 following a romantic and possibly physical relationship with Anthon. Anthon was a widow who became close friends with Dickinson and her friend Susan during their time at the Utica Female Academy.

The two women spent significant time together in Amherst, Massachusetts, in the late 1850s. They shared long walks, read literature aloud, and spent evenings at the piano. Dickinson wrote letters to Anthon expressing deep longing and affection. While the two never spoke openly about the nature of their connection due to the social restrictions of the time, Dickinson's writings from this period reflect a sense of impending loss. In April 1861, Anthon ended the relationship without explanation.

Dickinson described the experience as a devastating loss that she could not move past. This period of heartbreak coincided with the composition of Dickinson's most famous poem about hope. Anthon later lived a life involving several romantic attachments to women, including a long relationship with a young Englishwoman.