328 - A Bird came down the Walk...
A Bird came down the Walk -
He did not know I saw - He bit an Angleworm in halves And ate the fellow, raw, And then he drank a Dew - From a convenient Grass - And then hopped sidewise to the Wall To let a Beetle pass - He glanced with rapid eyes That hurried all around - They looked like frightened Beads, I thought - He stirred his Velvet Head Like one in danger, Cautious, I offered him a Crumb And he unrolled his feathers And rowed him softer home - Than Oars divide the Ocean, Too silver for a seam - Or Butterflies, off Banks of Noon Leap, phlashless as they swim. Analysis Stanza 1 - The speaker describes once seeing the bird come down the walk. The bird is unaware that it is being observed therefore it behaves naturally because it is not affected by her the speaker’s presence. Dickinson observes the bird and tries to communicate with the bird by offering it food. The theme of nature is made explicitly in the words ‘bird, angleworm’, because they are the product of nature. Dickinson has personified the bird giving it human characteristics ‘He bit the Angleworm in halves’, ‘He bit ate the fellow, raw,’. This is called anthropomorphism; animals are given human characteristics, the effect of this is that it makes it personal to Dickinson. ‘Raw’ and ‘he bit the angleworm in halves’ represents the bird’s wildness which reinforces the theme of nature. This idea of the bird biting the worm in half seems savage as does the idea of eating a man. The first stanza also has an ABCB rhyme meter. |
Stanza 2 – The alliteration of the bird drinking ‘Dew’ suggests a certain refinement. "From a grass" makes the action resemble the human action of drinking from a glass. ‘Morning dew’ resting on grass can be seen as the epitome of beautiful natural imagery. ‘And then hopped sidewise to the Wall, to let a Beetle pass’ this personification of the beetle makes the reader perceive it as an act of kindness, it accentuates nature’s beauty.
Stanza 3 – In this stanza, the rhythm changes and it changes from exact rhyme to slant rhyme. This stanza has no pause; the harsh enjambment drives the story forward. It reminds us that this is the moment that bird is in danger. ‘Rapid eyes, hurried and frightened’ this hyperawareness of the things around the bird suggests that it is in fear. The bird has finally realised the presence of the speaker. ‘Beads, velvet’ has pretty descriptions. Stanza 4 -The idea of danger in nature is made explicit but remains a minor note in this stanza and in the poem. It occupies only half a line, "Like one in danger." "Cautious," the speaker offers the crumb. She is interacting in a human way. This stanza is poetic, luxurious and decorated in lines 3 and 4. The bird in the last two stanzas is the centre image. The natural world emerges. Dickinson then describes the bird ready to fly away; ‘he unrolled his feathers’. Stanza 5 – Her description of his flight details his beauty and the grace of his flight. The bird flew away as though rowing in water. ‘’Oars divide the ocean.’’ Dickinson has the talent of providing a beautiful, breath-taking description. She evokes the delicacy and fluidity of flying through the air. ‘’Off Banks of Noon’ this gives an image of the bird splashlessly swimming through the sky. The powerful metaphorical language, complex structure of this poem and Dickinson’s credible ability to make everyday events into something extraordinary and exquisite mirrors the point that Dickinson is trying to make about the true source of experience. |