~~~EMILY!!!Poem-A-Day~~~"Adrift! A little boat adrift!" 30/1175

Adrift! A little boat adrift!
And night is coming down!
Will no one guide a little boat
Unto the nearest town?

So Sailors say — on yesterday —
Just as the dusk was brown
One little boat gave up its strife
And gurgled down and down.

So angels say — on yesterday —
Just as the dawn was red
One little boat — o'erspent with gales —
Retrimmed its masts — redecked its sails —
And shot — exultant on!

Poetry by Emily Dickinson

Dear Patient friends of Emily A Day Poetry analysis and creative (hopefully!) much deep and meaningful enjoyment!

Today's poem is in the topic of the nautical theme of crossing over the river Styx to get to the far shore to eternal life. The Greek myth motif mixed with Christian themes seem to be a constant source of inspiration for Emily Dickinson.

Adrift! A little boat adrift!
And night is coming down!
Will no one guide a little boat
Unto the nearest town?

In the first stanza Emily is discussing a little boat which is lost seemingly adrift. And there is a storm coming "night is coming down" and no one to "guide" the little boat. The little boat being an analogy to the human soul once departed trying to find the narrow gate to heaven. No one to guide the boat to the nearest town, which is an analogous to the pearly gates of heaven.

So Sailors say — on yesterday —
Just as the dusk was brown
One little boat gave up its strife
And gurgled down and down.

So yesterday sailors noted a "little boat" give up its "strife" or life and succumb to the ocean to be "gurgled down and down" maybe to the other way, not towards the glory of the dusk sunset. Yesterday when the soul was alive and not transmuted to pure spirit through death, dying, and transforming or transfiguring to Spirit.

So angels say — on yesterday —
Just as the dawn was red
One little boat — o'erspent with gales —
Retrimmed its masts — redecked its sails —
And shot — exultant on!

Now in the last stanza there are angels instead of sailors yet it is still yesterday, so the living with the spirit angels. Emily is telling us that angels live amongst us while we live, just as the sailors also live. The analogy to angels and sailors is interesting here. Maybe Emily means that we are being guided by those who "entertain angels unawares" (Bible).

The living sailors replaced with the spiritual counterparts, angels of infinity. The dawn of one's life is an analogy for being alive while the sunset is an analogy to death and dying. The dawn is red, as is the dusk, the repeating patterns are the same just as birth and death although opposite are very similar in the opposite ends of beginning from end being tied together in the middle.

As always, another red imagery in the dusk and dawn which is always employed by Miss Emily. As she does use red in pertetuity by Ms Emily! Emily obviously loves the drama of red, crimson, basically anything red, be it leaves or scarves, etc. as noted in her previous poems.

Red could be representing the precious blood of Jesus, and indeed a colour with great metaphysical and spiritual meaning for this ethereal Transdentalist. (not sure if Emily is studying Transcendalism at this time, however, here symbols do have the same images as the Transcendalist school I believe. It will be interesting to note the connections here as we progress.)

So when the boat "retrimmed its mast and redected its sails" because of the gales of life trying to drown the boat or mortal soul (all analogy here folks). As well we realize that Emily is really talking about how a sinner can clean up his/her act and progress to heaven (after saying the sinner's prayer perhaps?). Heaven, which seems to be only entered at dusk or dawn for Ms Emily. That hour of our death; the sunset.
And "shot - exultant on!" as the little boat clearly sails right through to eternity. Those narrow gates being open for a brief setting moment of splendour and glory. A smart poem, very brilliant as usual Miss Emily!

http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Adrift!_A_little_boat_adrift!


Chiccoreal's take on "Adrift a little boat adrift!"


Small boat is drifting
drifting away
haplessly lost
without direction
as the final curtain calls
the red encroaching sunset
gales whipped up to swallow
the small soul tolls await
the small boat life begins
at sunset
the small life boat bobs aimlessly
as we like boats adrift
Wait to for the Capn
to come aboard this
soon to be night
Yet
with intent and purpose
by retrim of mast
by redeck of sail
Onward Sunset Soldier
Shoot through to Skyward Ho!

jj