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A Day by Emily Dickinson: Summary & Analysis | Questions and Answers | Class 12 English
A Day by Emily Dickinson
Table of Contents
GLOSSARY OF THE TEXT
steeples (n.): tall towers with a spire on top, rising above the roof of a church
amethyst (n.): purple precious stone used in making jewellery
bonnets (n.): hats tied with strings under the chin, worn by babies and women
bobolinks (n.): songbirds with large, somewhat flat heads, short necks and short tails
dominie (n.): a schoolmaster (Scottish); a pastor or clergyman (US)
stile (n.): a set of steps that help people to climb over a fence or wall, especially in the village
ABOUT THE POET
Name: Emily Dickinson
Birth: December 10, 1830, Amherst, Massachusetts, U.S.
Nationality: American
Death: May 15, 1886 (Aged 55) Amherst, Massachusetts, U.S.
Occupation: Poet
Her Notable Works:
▪︎ I'm Nobody! Who are you?
▪︎ Hope" is the thing with feathers
▪︎ Because I could not stop for Death
▪︎ Wild Nights – Wild Nights!
▪︎ A Bird came down the Walk
▪︎ I heard a Fly buzz—when I died
▪︎ I taste a liquor never brewed
▪︎ I like to see it lap the Miles
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POEMS IMPORTANT QUESTIONS' SOLUTION PACK
ABOUT THIS POEM
The poem "A Day' is a wonderful poem that has been composed by one of the renowned American poets, Emily Dickinson. The original title of this poem is "I'll Tell How the Sun Rose." This poem was composed in the year 1862. This is a short poem that is quite meaningful in its both literal and symbolic meanings.
This poem is simply about the description of the natural processes of sunrise and sunset. These two natural processes have been presented with both literal and symbolic concepts, showing the transition from life to death.
This poem has been told from the perspective of an innocent child. Here in this poem, an innocent child expresses his or her views on sunrise and sunset. He or she has presented the description of a beautiful day using brilliant imagery and symbols in this poem, which leads the children from innocence to experience.
There are two sections in the poem, and each section includes eight lines. In the first section, we find the speaker describing the sunrise, whereas in the second section, we find him or her describing his or her lack of knowledge of the sunset. In both sections, the speaker has tremendously used the images and symbols to compare both the beautiful aspects of the sunrise and the sunset.
Here in this poem, the poet has presented altogether four different stanzas in both sections, and each stanza consists of four lines (quatrains).
The speaker has described both sections of the sunrise and the sunset using concepts regarding humans, the village, and its different things.
This poem presents a full day from a fresh sunrise until a mysterious sunset, which symbolically presents the concept of the beginning of life (childbirth) and the end of life (death).
MAIN THEME
SUMMARY & ANALYSIS
I’ll tell you how the sun rose, ___
A ribbon at a time.
The steeples swam in amethyst,
The news like squirrels ran.
The hills untied their bonnets,
The bobolinks begun.
Then I said softly to myself,
“That must have been the sun!”
In the very first stanza, we find the speaker describing how the sun rises for all the readers. Here, he or she describes certain changes that seem to occur when the sun rises in the east. According to him or her, as the sun rises, a stripe of ribbons is seen in the sky, and the steeples of the churches seem to have a deep violet colour like amethyst. The news of the sunrise spreads like a squirrel's run. Next, in the second stanza, he or she describes the further changes in nature as the hills untie their bonnets and the bobolinks start singing their songs. After all these changes, the speaker softly says to himself or herself that it must have been the sun.
ANALYSIS OF THE POEM
A Day by Emily Dickinson
Here, the speaker (a little child) tells all the readers about the natural process of sunrise. We find the use of both literal and symbolic meanings He or she has compared different aspects of the sunrise metaphorically using different images.
Here in these two stanzas, we find the speaker quite confident while describing the sunrise, but at last, we also find the speaker's innocence when he or she says that it must have been the sun.
Here, the morning rays of the sun are metaphorically compared to a stripe of ribbons in the sky. These rays of the sun change the colours of the steeple of churches, symbolising the power of the sun that provides its light to all in this nature, no matter human houses or the gods'. The sun shows its effects in both the sky and on land. For him or her, the process of sunrise is as quick as a squirrel's run that keeps on moving so quickly everywhere. Here we find the use of simile, a literal device to show comparison using 'like' or 'as'. In this line, the poet compares the news, i.e., the sunrise, with squirrels' runs using 'like'.
Nature is so quick, and it awakens as quickly as a squirrel's run. These beautiful changes in nature, due to the sunrise, keep flowing so quickly that their news is perceived quickly by all. All the creatures in this nature know about the arrival of the beautiful morning. As the sun rises, everything seems to happen so quickly.
In the second stanza, the speaker describes the conditions of the hills after the sunrise. Here, hills are even personified by the speaker. As the sun rises, the hills untie their bonnets, which is a metaphor for mist over the hills. The rays of the sun uncover the mists of the hills, i.e., due to the heat of the sun's rays, the mist over the hills evaporates. At this particular time, the beautiful birds' bobolinks start their beautiful morning song. At the time, the speaker feels the morning time as well as its surroundings and concludes her feelings by saying that it must have been the sun with the help of which all these tremendous changes were seen in this nature.
All these events show the speaker's innocence regarding his or her view of the natural world. He or she only sees the beauty of life. The sun amazingly brings the morning to life. Here, the morning sun and its amazing effects on nature symbolise the beginning of life.
As the sun rises:
1. Ribbons are seen in the sky due to the golden rays of the sun.
2. The steeple of the churches seems to have a deep violet colour, like amethyst, due to the rays of the sun.
3. The news of this glorious change spreads so quickly, like squirrels' runs.
4. Hills start uncovering the mist due to the heat of the sun's rays.
5. The speaker realises that the sun must be the sole reason behind all these tremendous changes.
Symbolic meaning:
These stanzas symbolise the beginning of life. Sunrise is the beginning of the day, which brings beautiful changes to nature. It's a matter of joy to feel a fresh morning. Similarly, the beginning of life, i.e., childbirth, is also a matter of newness and joy. The steeple is mentioned here, which is a religious aspect and directly connected to the lives of humans.
But how he set, I know not.
There seemed a purple stile
Which little yellow boys and girls
Were climbing all the while
Till when they reached the other side,
A dominie in gray
Put gently up the evening bars,
And led the flock away
In the third stanza, we find the speaker less confident in describing the mysterious sunset. During the time of sunset, the speaker finds a purple stile and the yellow rays of the setting sun on the boys and girls. These kids climb the purple stile.
In the fourth stanza, the speaker tells the readers about further events. When the day ends, the yellow boys and girls reach the other side, climbing the purple stile. On the next side, they are led by a dominion in gray. He put up the evening bars gently and led the flock away with him.
ANALYSIS
Here in the third stanza, the speaker relates his or her less understanding of the sunset, i.e., uncertainty of death. Here, the time of sunset has been symbolically presented as the last stage of human life. The boys and girls in yellow present the changing colour of human life during the end. They climb the purple stile, which shows the beginning of their life's journey from childhood, and reaching the other side presents the final stage of their life when they get old.
This purple stile presents the rays of the sun on the way steps of different stages on which humans make their journey from birth till the end. They keep on moving on this journey, experiencing different things in life from birth to the final stage. But when they reach the other side (the final stage) of this long journey, completing different stages, a dominie in grey (God) plays the vital role of leading them and taking them along with him. God leads all those who reach the last stage of their lives. God securely takes charge of all and leads the humans, closing the bars gently, i.e., closing life's gate. These examples in the poem show the tremendous circle of life.
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