I fell in love with this poem after reading the title.  It reminded me of the saying “The truth is hard to swallow” but Emily Dickinson’s diction and arrangement of words made me do a double take.  At first, I thought Dickinson was encouraging the manipulation of truth when she added “but tell it slant”.  However, this doesn’t seem to be the case because she elaborates how “Success in Circuit lies/ Too bright for our infirm delight”.

The truth, it seems, is only successful when it is told in “circuits” or through repetition.  Otherwise, it is too much for mentally weak or plain out stubborn people to handle or accept.  I also found the wordplay on “lies” interesting.  In this context, I assume Dickinson means that successful transference of truth is dependent or lies on repetition.  Positioning “too bright” directly after “lies” is interesting since people tend to associate lies with darkness.  Furthermore, this juxtaposition made me think about how if you tell a lie often enough many people accept it as truth.  Miguel’s song “Lie to Me” is a perfect example of how a lie that’s repeatedly told transforms itself into something sweet and desirable.

In the second stanza the magnitude of “Truth’s superb surprise” continues to be described.  Similar to how children react to seeing lightning for the first time without it being explained to them, truth can startle some people.  Because the truth can shock and disturb someone’s entire framework, Dickinson suggests that “The Truth must dazzle gradually/Or every man be blind.”  Again, the concept of truth being repetitively delivered resurfaces. Since the truth is hard to swallow, it’s better to feed it spoon by spoon rather than wolf it down.  That way, people don’t choke or “go blind” in this case.

By telling a truth “slant” you don’t actually change its substance.  Rather, you change the angle or the way you approach telling such truth.