A Light exists in Spring
Not present on the Year
At any other period —
When March is scarcely here

A Color stands abroad
On Solitary Fields
That Science cannot overtake
But Human Nature feels.

It waits upon the Lawn,
It shows the furthest Tree
Upon the furthest Slope you know
It almost speaks to you.

Then as Horizons step
Or Noons report away
Without the Formula of sound
It passes and we stay —

A quality of loss
Affecting our Content
As Trade had suddenly encroached
Upon a Sacrament.

Analysis, meaning and summary of Emily Dickinson's poem A Light exists in Spring

11 Comments

  1. Jen says:

    I don’t see at all what it has to do with day light savings. When I discussed this with my teacher, I came to the understanding that it had to do with many things. This poem is about life in general; about love and death. Spring to me represents a new life. For instance life after death; heaven. Emily Dickinson writes a lot about heaven. She refers to it often. I believe this poem is about life, love, and/or death passing.

  2. Missy says:

    I never got the fact it was about daylight savings so I just wanted to thank ya’ll have fun arguing!

  3. Joe says:

    im sorry but analysing this poem in eleventh grade absolutley blows

  4. Robert says:

    This is a great piece of American poetry. Anyone who does not have the maturity to read it and analyze it should not criticize because a lack of intellect

  5. Ariella says:

    Just because you two don’t understand poems, doesn’t mean they’re stupid. It means you lack the ability to analysize and gather abstract thoughts. Even if she was a lesbian, what does her life style have to do with how good of a poet she is? Grow up.

  6. Lewis Koenig says:

    Way to go pete b. The more people trash poems, the better. Poets are losers who can do nothing other than write worthless things. They should do something productive, like science and math. Stop contaminating society with garbage. She was probably a lesibian anyway.

  7. Lewis Koenig says:

    Way to go pete b. The more people trash poems, the better. Poets are losers who can do nothing other than write worthless things. They should do something productive, like science and math. Stop contaminating society with garbage. She was probably a lesibian anyway.

  8. Kat says:

    i understand that she is talking about day light savings time but what i don’t understand is why

  9. Kathy says:

    #1- i think Pete b should keep his unnecessary & idiotic comments to himself
    #2- this is a beautiful poem and i agree about the light being day light savings time

  10. Tara says:

    “A Light exists in Spring” is a beautiful poem on how the writer sees spring differently with the specific light that does exist in spring (aka daylight savings time)

  11. Pete b says:

    I feel this poem is Dickinson unleashing her lesbian wild side

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Do you have any comments, criticism, paraphrasis or analysis of this poem that you feel would assist other visitors in understanding the meaning or the theme of this poem by Emily Dickinson better? If accepted, your analysis will be added to this page of American Poems. Together we can build a wealth of information, but it will take some discipline and determination.