A Bird came down the walk

A Bird came down the Walk   - Emily Dickinson

Emily Dickinson, a great American poet. She was born in “Amherst Massachusetts”. After her studies, she attended the Mount Holyoke Female seminary. Dickinson lived much of her life in isolated. She never married, Married and most friendship between her and others depend entirely upon correspondence out of 1800 poems only 10 of her poems were unique to her era. They contain short lines, typically lack titles and often use slant rhyme. Many of her poems deals with the themes of death and immortality after her death. Her younger sister discovered her poems, then all became public. Her first collection of poetry was published in 1890 by personal acquaintances. Despite Dickinson's prolific writing, fewer than a dozen of her poems were published during her life.

 

The Poem

A Bird, came down the Walk -
He did not know I saw -
He bit an Angle Worm 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 abroad -
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, plashless as they swim.

 

  Summary

The speaker describes seeing a bird which come down the walk, the bird is unaware that it was being watched. The bird searched for food and caught one and ate an angleworm, then “drank a Dew / From a convenient Grass” then it hopped sideways to let a beetle pass by. The bird’s frightened, bead-like eyes glanced all around. Cautiously, the speaker offered him “a Crumb,” but the bird in fear  “unrolled his feathers” and flew away—as though rowing in the water, but with a grace gentler than that with which “Oars divide the ocean” or butterflies leap “off Banks of Noon”; the bird appeared to swim without splashing.

Detailed summary

Stanza 1

“a bird, came down…

………… raw”

In the first stanza the poet describes a beautiful moment of a bird. This bird is coming “down the walk” near the speaker’s home. The speaker could observe the bird and its actions without disturbing the bird, for the birds would be frightened due to human interventions. The author simply describing on what she’s seeing. The bird unaware of his surrounding, catches a worm cuts into pieces and devours it. The bird is noted here as an “angle worms”. The bird eats it raw, biting it in half.

 Stanza 2

And then, he drank a Dew

….to let a Beetle pass...

In the 2^nd stanza the speaker observers that the bird drinking the “Dew” from the grass. The bird didn’t go anywhere in search of the water. It was quite clever enough to use what is available near it. The poet is presenting a simple life of human. The poet shows and her simple life of the nature. “Beetle”. Both the bird and the beetle are simple creatures of the bird makes a honest effort to “hop” to a side and “let” the beetle pass.

 Stanza 3

“he glanced with rapid eyes.

…. like frightened…

he stirred his velvet head”

The behavior of the bird is well observed by the speaker. The speaker observes each movement of the bird and studies its behavior. The bird now looks around with a “rapid eyes”. It was so quick for it is trying to see everything at once. It is on the very edge and knows the dangers around him.

The speaker now turns her description to enjoy. She says the bird’s eyes appear like” frightened Beads” They are shiny, black and rolling around fast. Now the bird turns its “velvet heads” quite interesting part as the poet uses a kind of luxury description about the bird. The poet sees the bird as a beautiful creation. 

Stanza 4

“like one in danger, cautious,

I offered him a crumb,

And, he unrolled his feathers,

And rowed him softer home”

The fourth stanza explains the action of the speaker with the bird. She goes near and offers the bird “a crumb” of food. But the bird’s reaction is negative to the poet’s interaction and flies away ignoring her.

The description is quite complicated as for the bird “unrolled his feathers.” It is a slow process of the bird; she would see the ‘Velvet’ beauty. The word “row” implies “to” sail. The use of metaphor continues into fifth stanza, Emily relates water and flight. 

Stanza 5

“then oars divide the ocean

Too silver for a seam

... Leap, splash less as they swim."

The last stanza is more metaphorical. The poet describes the bird’s velvet feathers movement in the air. She describes the bird’s movement similar to “oars diving the ocean”. The bird is a thing of beauty compared to a butterfly that could to seen enjoying the it flights near “Banks of Noon” in the heat of the day. It jumps and moves “splash less” through the air. It moves swiftly through the air as an oar would through water.

 Themes

 Nature’s beauty, human connection, and self-consciousness are the major themes.

At the beginning the poem looks so simple about a bird and its daily routine. That is to find food, eat it, and fly away without disturbing the earth. From the other side the poem explains the nature of man and the bird. Generally, the nature protects every living thing. But here human (part of nature) frightens the bird. In fear the bird walks away.

Literary Devices

Literary Devices are tools used by writers to convey their emotions, idea and themes to make text more appealing to the reader. Emily Dickinson had used some Literary Devices in this poem to make interesting.

1. Assonance: Assonance is the repetition of vowel sound in the same line.

• Ex: He sound of “o” in rowed him.
•  Softer home and sound of “I” in “they looked like frightened Beads.
  

2. Alliteration: repetition of consonant sounds in the line quick succession.

• Ex: sound of “I” in “They looked like frightened Beads. I thought.

3 Consonance

    Repetition of Consonant sound in the same line.

• Ex: sound of “d” in -and then hopped sidewise to the wall. 
• Sound of “n” in “And then, he Drank a Dew”

4. Enjambment 

    A thought that does not end at a line break, but it continues in the next line.

•   Ex:” and hopped sidewise to the wall to let a Beetle pass”

5. Imagery 

    It is used to make the readers to see the picture with their sense.

•  Ex:” A Bird came down the walk”
• “He bit an Angle worm in halves”
• “I offered him a crumb”

6. Metaphor 

   Comparison is made between different persons and objects.

•  Ex:” Birds head is compared with velvet.
• “He stirred his Velvet Head”

7. Personification: 

    Comparing human qualities to inanimate objects. The bird is personified as “He” instead of “it”.

• “He unrolled his feathers; and Rowed him softer Home”

8. Simile

  Comparison made between different person and objects using the words “like” or “as”. 

•  Ex: - birds’ eyes are compared with beads “they looked like frightened Beads I thought”

9. Symbolism

      It is used to signify ideas and qualities. Symbolic meanings are different from the literal meanings.

10. Quatrain

      four-line stanza from Persian tradition. In this poem each stanza is written in quatrain. Five stanzas  are there.

 11. Rhyme

        The poem follows ABAB pattern

 Conclusion

Thus, it is a thought-provoking poem with natural beauty. The poet talks about the simple life of a bird.

It looks plain, but the bird too faces its hard ways to survive because of the nature of human who tries to enjoy the bird’s movement, also he’s offering of crumb is rejected by the bird as he was too cautious. There is a gap understanding between the two creatures of nature.

 

 Thank you 

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