A Day
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!”
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.
Introduction
"A Day" by Emily Dickinson is a free-verse poem written which is also known as "I'll Tell You How The Sun Rose".
The main theme of this poem is about birth and death, which is symbolized by the rising and setting of the sun. The poem reflects on the passage of time and the fleeting nature of life and how life is both unpredictable and short.
Summary
In this poem, the poet describes the gradual rising and setting of the sun in a series of vivid and imaginative images. The sun is compared to a ribbon that slowly unfolds as it rises, illuminating the steeples of the churches with a purple or violet glow. The spreading of sunlight is compared to the quick movement of squirrels, while the hills are personified as untying their bonnets as they become visible with the sunrise. The start of the day is also characterized by the singing of the bobolinks.
In contrast, the speaker admits uncertainty about the sunset. The sunset is depicted as a visual in which yellow boys and girls climb up a stile or ladder, representing the sun's rays. A gray teacher closes the gate as the children reach the other side, symbolizing death and the unknown destination that awaits us all.
Explanation
Stanza 1
I'll tell you how the sun rose, —
A ribbon at a time.
The steeples swam in amethyst,
The news like squirrels ran.
GLOSSARY
steeple - a church tower
swam - past form of 'swim'
amethyst - a precious purple stone
In the first stanza, the speaker is describing how the sun rises slowly and steadily, like a ribbon unfolding. The steeples(the pointed towers of churches) are described as swimming in amethyst(gem in purple or violet colour), which mean the sunrise illuminates the church steeples with a purple or violet glow.
The image of news running like squirrels refers to the quick spread of the sun rays. The simile "The news like squirrels ran" highlights the quick and lively movement of the sun rays as they spread across the landscape, just as squirrels move quickly and energetically.
Stanza 2
The hills untied their bonnets,
The bobolinks begun.
Then I said softly to myself,
“That must have been the sun!”
GLOSSARY
bonnet - a kind of hat
bobolinks - a North American songbird
In this stanza, the speaker describes the unfolding of the day as the hills become visible and the birds start chirping. The line "The hills untied their bonnets" suggests a personification of the hills as if they were wearing hats or bonnets. Using personification, the poet attributes human-like qualities to the hills. Similar to how a person's head and hair become visible when they remove their hat, the hills become visible when they remove the darkness. The hills, previously concealed in darkness, become visible as the sunlight illuminates their peaks.
The bobolinks, a type of bird, start to sing which symbolizes the start of the day. The poet then reflects that what she has witnessed must have been the sun rising.
Stanza 3
But how he set, I know not.
There seemed a purple stile
Which little yellow boys and girls
Were climbing all the while
GLOSSARY
stile - a step or set of steps for passing over a fence or wall
In this stanza, the speaker expresses her uncertainty about how the sun sets, as opposed to how she described the sun rising in the previous stanzas. She then uses metaphor and personification to describe the sunset scene, The poet imagines a visual in which boys and girls climb up the "purple stile" or ladder and reach the other side. The yellow boys and the girls represent the yellow rays of the sun.
However, now as an adult, the speaker feels weighed down by the burdens of life. Even the cool waters of summer pools cannot ease the feverish feeling of the speaker's brow.
Stanza 4
Till when they reached the other side,
A dominie in gray
Put gently up the evening bars,
And led the flock away.
GLOSSARY
dominie- a schoolmaster
As the children reach the other side of the stile, a gray teacher then closes the gate taking the children away. This teacher symbolizes death, which puts an end to life and takes people away to an unknown destination. This "dominie in gray" symbolizes death, which puts an end to life and takes people away to an unknown destination.
The phrase "put gently up the evening bars" means closing the gates or barriers that separate the day from the night. It is a metaphorical expression used to describe the end of the day and the beginning of the night.
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