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About the Author
One of the most eminent American poets from the nineteenth century, Emily Dickinson’s (1830-1886) poetry was heavily influenced by the Metaphysical poets of seventeenth-century England, as well as her reading of the Book of Revelation and her upbringing in a Puritan New England town. These upbringings inculcated in her Calvinist, orthodox, and conservative approach to Christianity. Dickinson and Walt Whitman are considered the founders of a uniquely American poetic voice. While Dickinson was extremely prolific as a poet her regularly enclosed poems in letters to friends she was not publicly recognized during her lifetime. However, she has been steadily gaining popularity through her posthumously published poems. In her poem “A Day”, Dickinson, through the use of brilliant imageries and symbols, describes a beautiful day that leads the children from innocence to experience.
Summary
The poem “A Day’ is a wonderful poem which was composed by an American poet Emily Dickinson. In the poem, she describes a beautiful day that leads the children from innocence to experience using brilliant imageries and symbols. This poem has been told from the perspective of an innocent child.
In the poem, an innocent child expresses his/her views on sunrise and sunset. There are four stanzas in the poem. The first two stanzas describe about sunrise and the last two stanzas describe about sunset. This is also a symbolic poem. The sunrise symbolizes to birth or happiness and the sunset symbolizes to death or sadness. The speaker says that she would tell how the sun rose. The sun rises like a ribbon. In the poem, the rays of the sun are compared with the ribbon. When the sun rises, the steeples (tall tower with a spire on top) swims in the amethyst (purple precious stone). The news of the sunrise spreads like the squirrels run. The hills are covered with bonnets (hats tied with strings under the chin). As the sun rises, the hills untied their bonnets. Here, the bonnets refer to darkness, fog, mist, cloud etc. These all bonnets disappear with the sunrise and the hills become free. Similarly, the American large songbirds, bobolinks sing as the sun rises. After seeing these all things, the speaker says that it must have been a day.
The last two stanzas describe about sunset. The speaker says that she does not know how the sun sets. There seems a purple stile ( a set of steps that help the people to climb). Then the little yellow boys and girls appear there. The boys and girls seem yellow due to the yellow rays of the setting sun. They climb the stile and reach to other side. Perhaps they are returning their home because the sun is setting and soon there will be dark. The dominie (pastor) is waiting to the children there. He receives the children and put the evening bars at the stile so that the children cannot go to play again. It was getting dark. So the pastor collects all the boys and girls and led the flock away.
Understanding the text
Answer the following questions.
a. How does the poet describe the morning sun in the first stanza?
Ans: The poet describes the morning sun in beautiful way in the first stanza. In the poem, the rays of the sun are compared with the colourful ribbon. When the sun rises, the steeples swims in the amethyst and the American large songbirds, bobolinks sing. As the sun rises, the hills untied their bonnets.
b. What does the line “The news like squirrels ran’ mean?
Ans: The line “The news like squirrels ran’ means that the news of the rising of the sun spreads as fast as squirrels run. The poet has used the simile “like” and she has compared the speed of the rising of the sun with the squirrels.
c. What do you understand by the line “The hills untied their bonnets’?
Ans: As the sun rises, the hills untied their bonnets. Here, the bonnets refer to darkness, fog, mist, cloud etc. These all bonnets disappear with the sunrise and the hills become free.
d. Is the speaker watching the morning sun? Why? Why not?
Ans: No, the speaker is not speaking the morning sun rather she is only describing the natural process of sunrise. An innocent child is watching the morning sun.
e. How does the sun set?
Ans: The sun sets quite mysteriously because the poet herself cannot say how the sun sets.
Reference to the context
a. What, according to the speaker, is a day?
Ans: Generally ‘a day’ refers to sunrise and sunset. Symbolically ‘sunrise’ refers to birth and sunset refers to death. According to the speaker, a day is a minor form of journey throughout the life which usually begins with many new hopes and lots of happiness. After learning many new things and gaining lots of experience throughout the day, it comes to an end leaving a dusk.
b. What purpose does the hyphen in the first line serve in the poem?
A hyphen (-) is a punctual mark used as pauses, longer ones than commas or semi-colons. It enhances the methodical, unhurried nature of the scene. Poet has filled the gap by letting readers imagine after the end of the phrase.
c. What makes this poem lyrical and sonorous? Discuss.
The poem “A Day” by Emily Dickenson is both a lyrical and sonorous poem. Emily has used her magic wand to make this poem lyrical and sonorous. She has depicted her own experience of dusk and dawn in her writing. The pronoun “I”, as used in lyrical poems, indicates the poet’s persona. On that note, ‘A Day‘—like most of Dickinson’s poems—is a lyric; it expresses a powerful thought from the perspective of a single persona. This poem’s musicality is enhanced by the use of sound techniques such as alliteration, assonance, rhyme, and rhythm.
d. Who are the target audience of the speaker? Why?
Basically, children are the target audience of the speaker because the poem has tried to reveal the truth of human life by comparing it with a day. The speaker is imparting the message about the beginning and ending of a day where a kid accomplishes his journey from innocence to experience. Thus, the speaker is delivering her beautiful message about life to everyone mostly the children.
e. The poem seems to describe a day for children. How would the adult people respond to this poem? Discuss this poem with your parents/guardians and write the answer based on their responses.
As this poem speaks about the reality of human life, it is somehow obvious that the adult people will respond normally and will find it meaningful because they also have gained the same experience throughout the life-time.
Reference beyond the text
b. Write a personal essay on A Day in the School.
A Day in the School
Everyone loves school life and mostly the beautiful events which one experiences in a school. People develop a sense of emotional and social connection with the school. The school teaches us so many life lessons and values
But, there comes a day when we all need to part away from our school and our friends. It is difficult for anyone to leave the school one day and forever. When I recall my last day at school, I become very emotional. It was a moment of painful separation.
That day it felt like we had a really short journey together that it passed so fast. Some of my friends became too emotional that tears started rolling down their cheeks. There was a small gathering arranged in our school hall.
Our juniors welcomed us to the hall which was decorated for us. Everyone gathered to bid us goodbye and to wish us for a better future. Our juniors gave speeches. Some of them sang and danced for us. They also asked us to give speeches. Some of my friends and I went to the stage and performed a group song. I also gave a speech on how we spent our school days there.
Our teachers came to us and started consoling us. They tried to inspire us with motivational words. Our headmaster praised us for being disciplined and honest in school. She also advised us to maintain the same wherever we go. All other teachers encouraged us and told us to do hard work in life because it would help us to be successful in life.
The day was a mixture of sadness and happiness. I felt happy I was going to a new school. I was sad because I was leaving my teachers and was parting from our dearest friends. It was a hard day for every one of us. This is how I experienced my last day at school.
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