A Narrow Fellow In The Grass

A Narrow Fellow in the Grass is a poem by the American poet Emily Dickinson. It was first published anonymously in 1866 and later republished under her name as part of the collection Poems (1890). This poem uses personification to explore themes such as fear, danger, and mortality.


The poem starts with an image of a "narrow fellow," likely referring to a snake that lives in the grass, and provides a striking contrast between its natural environment and its own form: "He dwells with beauty—beauty that must die." Through this imagery, Dickinson paints a picture of something beautiful but fleeting, much like life itself. By emphasizing beauty's fragility, she draws attention to our shared mortality while hinting at feelings of dread associated with death.


In addition to exploring fear through imagery, Dickinson also employs vivid language throughout the poem to create an atmosphere filled with tension and suspense. She cleverly weaves together lines that suggest movement or action—"hisses," "shrinks," or even just simply running away—which creates anticipation for what might happen next in this situation. As readers try to imagine what could be lurking beneath the surface, they are pulled into her narrative world, where things may not always turn out as one would expect them to due to unexpected dangers from within nature itself.


Moreover, Dickinson offers insight into human psychology by highlighting how irrational fears can often lead us astray when confronted with potential threats: "I never saw so thin a creature...Yet whenever he walks... I shrink." Here, she captures our tendency toward self-preservation as well as our instinctive reactions when faced with unfamiliar situations. Both realizations serve to heighten feelings of unease within us all about confronting new experiences or dealing with unknown outcomes.


Overall, Emily Dickinson's A Narrow Fellow in the Grass is a powerful exploration of human emotions surrounding death and uncertainty set against the backdrop of nature. Poetic techniques such as personification and vivid language choices help capture these complex ideas beautifully without overwhelming readers. Her use of sensory details helps bring alive sensations that allow readers to reflect on their fears while providing thought-provoking questions as to why they happen in the first place. This ultimately makes her work a timeless classic worthy of being studied again and again over the years.


Related Essays
A Narrow Fellow in the Grass by Emily Dickinson

A Narrow Fellow in the Grass by Emily Dickinson The poem, “A Narrow Fellow in the Grass,” by Emily Dickinson is a collaboration of fear and intrigue. The poem is presented through a young boy as he makes his way through cool and damp grassland during the afternoon. The issue the young boy must deal with is the unwelcome encounter with a snake. From the first glimpse of the slithering snake the tone of the poem is set: an uneasiness mood followed by persistent fear. The combination of external

Show More
A Narrow Fellow In The Grass Literary Devices

"A Narrow Fellow in the Grass," to make the reader understand what the meaning is in the poem. In the article, "Excerpts from 'A Narrow Fellow in the Grass'," it states that "The poem is structured to relate the speaker’s experience in encountering nature, specifically in the form of a snake" (Estes 2). Thus, meaning that the author of the poem is talking about a snake in his experience. In the poem, "A Narrow Fellow in the Grass," the author states that the snake is "A narrow Fellow in the

Show More
A Bird Came Down the Walk, and a Narrow Fellow in the Grass, by Emily Dickinson

"A bird came down the walk” and “A narrow fellow in the grass” are both best known poems in the world by Emily Dickinson. Both poems talk about descriptions of nature. “A bird came down the walk” includes birds and images, true to her usual, easy way to capture the bird's personality. Birds become unyielding nature of the mysterious emblem. This poem is a simple experience seeing birds hop down the path and celebrates every detail which is simple but beautiful order of nature. She

Show More
Analyzing Emily Dickinson's Poetry

as long to read poetry rather than just an average article from the newspaper because I have to analyze it. Emily Dickinson’s poems can be very strange and difficult to understand. She is famous for writing poems about love and death. “A narrow Fellow in the Grass” is about fear and “Because I could not stop for Death” is about death. Her poem’s themes are all very different from each other, but she uses personification both of these poems. “Because I could not stop for

Show More
Emily Dickinsons Use of Nature

themes. In Dickinson’s poem, “A narrow Fellow in the Grass”, she describes a snake moving through the grass. Dickinson writes, “A narrow Fellow in the Grass/ Occasionally rides-/ You may have met him- did you not/ His notice sudden is-/ The Grass divides as with a Comb-”. She describes the shape of the snake, narrow, and how it would be a familiar animal to most people. She goes on to explain what it looks like to see the snake sliding its way through the grass. Dickinson also describes how the

Show More
Analysis of Language, Imagery, and Diction of Dickinson’s Poetry

Language, Imagery, and Diction in Emily Dickinson's Because I could not stop for Death, A narrow Fellow in the Grass, and I felt a Funeral in my Brain All good poets use the basic literary techniques of figurative language, imagery, and diction in their poems.  However, only great poets use these techniques to transmit an experience to the reader; Emily Dickinson was one these poets.  She used these techniques to bring the reader a new perception of life, and to widen and sharpen the readers’

Show More
What Is The Mood Of The Poem The Snake By Emily Dickinson

“The Snake” by Emily Dickinson is a poem that describes a man looking back on his childhood and a mistaken encounter with a snake while walking through the grass. That encounter leads the speaker to talk about feelings and emotions provoked by such an encounter. The poem was not titled “The Snake” by Dickson, the title is an addition chosen by an editor. While the title encompasses a large portion of what the poem is about, it also detracts from the poem in the sense that it does not allow the reader

Show More
Whitman vs. Dickinson

unique touch of expression in their works. Both poets have portrayed death in their poetry as a relief, a salvation, or escape to a better place- another life. They have formulated death as a positive yet ambiguous state. In Dickinson's "Narrow Fellow in the Grass" and Whitman's "Wound-Dresser", there exists a link in both poets ideas of death through each individuals style of writing. Both poets, through their distinct voice and word-choice, arrive at the same conclusion of death being a good and

Show More