A reading of a Dickinson poem by Dr Oliver Tearle
Many of Emily Dickinson’s greatest poems begin as if responding to an unheard question or request. ‘I’m Nobody! Who are you?’ is one such poem, and ‘I’ll tell you how the Sun rose’ is another. In this post, we offer some notes towards an analysis of this captivating poem.
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!’