A 871: etext transcription

The relationship between the fragments on the opposite sides of the manuscript is ambiguous; stray marks along the top and bottom scissored edges of A 871 and along the top scissored edge of A 871a are evidence of a textual gap that cannot be bridged. These extrageneric fragments may be passages marked for incorporation into a single composition; unrelated passages, each destined for incorporation into a different composition; or discrete texts, one or both of which may be freestanding pensées. It is also possible that Dickinson used A 871a as a space of revision—a space for sketching out a series of alternate openings or closings for the text on A 871. The text on A 871a is largely composed out of variants: lines 3–5 are echoed in lines 6–8; lines 9 and 10 are variants of each other; and lines 14 and 15 are variants of each other. Though the handwriting across both sides of the manuscript is similar, the handwriting on A 871a is looser and less precise than that on A 871, suggesting, perhaps, an exploratory or revisionary phase. Here Dickinson revised as she wrote, crossing out "One" and "anew" and penciling in variants "a" and "forever," and canceling a false start, "and this my," before revising the line to read "This mystic territory." The ambiguous mark following the word "single," here rendered "/," may be the numeral "1" or a private form of punctuation used to guide the writer-reader's eye through the text.