a narrow fellow in the grass

Question 1

speaker recall walking through grass & scaring snake away

Answer 1

describes this through vivid imagery- strange ways and develops it into an extended metaphor
snake reminds speaker of certain people who’ve theyve met & who took their breath away in anxiousness & tension

Question 2

opening quatrain describes

Answer 2

the snake. speakers seems playful in their description of the creature through use of the colloquial phrase.

Question 3

how are the snakes movements captured

Answer 3

use of the word “ride”, suggesting an ease of movement & a natural harmony with its surroundings

Question 4

addresses speaker directly

Answer 4

“You may have met him-“
engages us into this intimate encounter with the snake

Question 5

unconventional capitalization and frequent use of dashes

Answer 5

seen through the poem and characterize dickinsons poetry

Question 6

cleverly managed to create a picture of the animal w/o ever directly saying “snake”

Answer 6

“a spotted shaft”, “a Whip lash/ Unbraiding in the Sun” creates a vivid picture w/o specifying what creature is

Question 7

observed the neatness in which snake moves through grass

Answer 7

like a comb parting hair- it sends shivers down one’s spine

Question 8

use of punctuation

Answer 8

allowed the immediate thoughts of speaker to be expressed, just as quickly as snake is described, it moves
the swiftness & ease of movement admired by speaker is reinforced by her language

Question 9

speaker recognized threat posed by snake

Answer 9

snake is creature often associated with evil and slyness. suggestion of fear and anxiety and a sense of the much more dangerous and ominous assiciations of snakes and wild animals

Question 10

imagery hints at

Answer 10

the secrecy, danger and unpredictability of the snake
“shaft” suggests the danger and speed of an arrow shaft

Question 11

“a tighter breathing/ And Zero at the Bone.”

Answer 11

last line capture the inner terror by the animal-void, emptiness, physical sensation of an indescribable terror

Question 12

devil in disguise

Answer 12

adam and eve were deceived by a snake and went against gods will
this story predisposes us to see the snake as an evil deciever

Question 13

initial amusement turns to fear in final stanza

Question 14

“Grass”, “rides”, “notice sudden is-“

Answer 14

sibilance used throughout
resembles the hiss of the snake

Question 15

through use of dashes, what are we given

Answer 15

•given time to think
•we try to decipher what she’s saying, engaging the readers

Question 16

what do dashes symbolise

Answer 16

•way of symbolizing the fear and tight feeling in your chest upon encountering a snake

Question 17

tonal shift

Answer 17

•goes from initial amazement to fear

Question 18

imagery used for

Answer 18

•suggesting the danger and unpredictability of the snake
•”Shaft” suggest speed and danger of an arrow shaft as the “Grass divides as with a Comb -“ and the snake slithers through

Question 19

the “Fellow” is revealed to be a devil in disguise

Answer 19

•if we compare this to Adam and Eve, we can see the snake as an evil being who deceives others, first appearing harmless, then revealing its hidden danger