Narrow Fellow in the Grass
By Emily Dickenson
A narrow fellow in the grass
Occasionally rides;
You may have met him,--did you not,
His notice sudden is. Possibly talking about a snake
The grass divides as with a comb, As a snake would pass through
A spotted shaft is seen;
And then it closes at your feet
And opens further on. Like a snake disappearing then reappearing
He likes a boggy acre,
A floor too cool for corn.
Yet when a child, and barefoot,
I more than once, at morn,
Have passed, I thought, a whip-lash
Unbraiding in the sun,--
When, stooping to secure it,
It wrinkled, and was gone. It is just as fast arrived as it as departed
Several of nature's people
I know, and they know me;
I feel for them a transport
Of cordiality;
But never met this fellow,
Attended or alone,
Without a tighter breathing,
And zero at the bone. He or she is frightened by the snake!
A narrow fellow in the grass
Occasionally rides;
You may have met him,--did you not,
His notice sudden is. Possibly talking about a snake
The grass divides as with a comb, As a snake would pass through
A spotted shaft is seen;
And then it closes at your feet
And opens further on. Like a snake disappearing then reappearing
He likes a boggy acre,
A floor too cool for corn.
Yet when a child, and barefoot,
I more than once, at morn,
Have passed, I thought, a whip-lash
Unbraiding in the sun,--
When, stooping to secure it,
It wrinkled, and was gone. It is just as fast arrived as it as departed
Several of nature's people
I know, and they know me;
I feel for them a transport
Of cordiality;
But never met this fellow,
Attended or alone,
Without a tighter breathing,
And zero at the bone. He or she is frightened by the snake!
An Analysis
To paraphrase, this poem is about a person who is fascinated by a snake. He/she describes how it cuts through the boggy grass and disappears faster than it reappears from thin air. And then, at the conclusion of the poem, he/she tells us that they are frightened by the snake!
The author's attitude of the poem is curious, but then, very retracted and enclosed from being scared.
This poem can be connected to Scout Finch from To Kill a Mockingbird because Scout is very curious and her attitude towards things like snakes would be well summed up by this poem.
The theme of this poem is curiosity can hide the danger of a situation. Because of the curiosity in the beginning of the poem, but the realization of danger frightens he/she.
The tone of the poem is whimsical and inquisitive.
The author's attitude of the poem is curious, but then, very retracted and enclosed from being scared.
This poem can be connected to Scout Finch from To Kill a Mockingbird because Scout is very curious and her attitude towards things like snakes would be well summed up by this poem.
The theme of this poem is curiosity can hide the danger of a situation. Because of the curiosity in the beginning of the poem, but the realization of danger frightens he/she.
The tone of the poem is whimsical and inquisitive.