A Bird Came Down the Walk

A Bird Came Down the Walk First 3 stanzas - bird is oblivious to the fact he is being watched, goes about his business. celebration of the ordinary - magical nature of the everyday- mundane sight appearing extraordinary celebrates nature - lovingly describes the bird, beetle, grass sparkling with dew, butterflies, the vast silver ocean - natures beauty realistic view of nature - brutality and fear - natural order of things, devours worm, in fearful state itself "glanced with rapid eyes that hurried all around" parable for love - allegory for a failed love relationship - male bird rep Dickinson's lost lover, offers the bird a "crumb" he love, he rejects her offer and disappears, leaving her struck by his majesty "too silver for a seam" four line stanzas, strong iambic rhythm, lines of 6 syllables, third line each stanza 8 syllables assonance - "rowed him softer home" "velvet" and "head" alliteration "Oars divide the Ocean" "Butterflies, off Banks of noon" "Too silver for a seam" tone - first two stanzas casual playful innocent, worm described as a "fellow" grass as "convenient" ---- stanza 3 tone shifts, note of danger, look out for potential threats, atmosphere darkens ---- final stanza one of joyous exultation - celebrates majesty of bird taking flight imagery - opening stanzas - cute, homely, little traffic jam almost comedic "and then he hopped sidewise to the Wall/ To let a Beetle pass" birds flight is compared to a boat - inventive metaphor - rowing into the sky - "and rowed him softer home-" air depicted as a liquid element through which the bird "rows" and the butterflly "Swims" dickinsons world and the birds world keen observer of nature and the natural world bird entering the human world "came down the walk" human influence on nature smooth natural departure after human presence tactile image "he stirred his Velvet Head"

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