双语有声阅读：I'll tell you how the Sun rose

I'll tell you how the Sun rose -

A Ribbon at a time -

The Steeples swam in Amethyst¹ -

The news, like Squirrels, ran -

The Hills untied² their Bonnets³ -

The Bobolinks - begun -

Then I said softly to myself -

"That must have been the Sun"!

But how he set - I know not -

There seemed a purple stile

That little Yellow boys and girls

Were climbing all the while -

Till when they reached the other side,

A Dominie in Gray -

Put gently up the evening Bars -

And led the flock away -

 

Definitions

stile: a set of steps for crossing over a pasture fence or wall

Dominie: a schoolmaster

Bars: rails used to close off a gap in a pasture fence

 

Exemplified in this poem is her pure and beautiful descriptive talent. She looks at something simple and everyday, with the eyes of a child exploring and seeing these things for the first time. "I'll tell you how the Sun rose," she declares, and compares the sun's rays to ribbons that are let loose one at a time. Then she proceeds to describe how the day became lighter⁴, lighting⁵ steeple tops and hill tops first, streaks⁶ of the sunrise becoming brighter and filling the morning sky. Suddenly the sun's appearance spreads quickly; she likens it to the spreading of "news" that runs "like Squirrels". And the birds start to sing. 

 

Even though she cannot "know" for sure how the sun set, she can imagine and report what she thinks she sees. A protracted⁷ schoolchildren metaphor⁸ is used to describe the colors in the evening sky - the way yellow light appears through bars of horizontal cloud, and eventually fall into shadow. She compares the yellow light to schoolchildren, climbing a stile, crossing to the other side of the pasture wall where the gray-clad schoolmaster closes up the pasture for the night and shepherds the students away.

1 amethyst   

n.紫水晶

参考例句：

• She pinned a large amethyst brooch to her lapel.她在翻领上别了一枚大大的紫水晶饰针。
• The exquisite flowers come alive in shades of amethyst.那些漂亮的花儿在紫水晶的映衬下显得格外夺目。

2 untied   

松开，解开( untie的过去式和过去分词 )； 解除，使自由； 解决

参考例句：

• Once untied, we common people are able to conquer nature, too. 只要团结起来，我们老百姓也能移山倒海。
• He untied the ropes. 他解开了绳子。

3 bonnets   

n.童帽( bonnet的名词复数 )；（烟囱等的）覆盖物；（苏格兰男子的）无边呢帽；（女子戴的）任何一种帽子

参考例句：

• All the best bonnets of the city were there. 城里戴最漂亮的无边女帽的妇女全都到场了。 来自辞典例句
• I am tempting you with bonnets and bangles and leading you into a pit. 我是在用帽子和镯子引诱你，引你上钩。 来自飘（部分）

4 lighter   

n.打火机，点火器；驳船；v.用驳船运送；light的比较级

参考例句：

• The portrait was touched up so as to make it lighter.这张画经过润色，色调明朗了一些。
• The lighter works off the car battery.引燃器利用汽车蓄电池打火。

5 lighting   

n.照明，光线的明暗，舞台灯光

参考例句：

• The gas lamp gradually lost ground to electric lighting.煤气灯逐渐为电灯所代替。
• The lighting in that restaurant is soft and romantic.那个餐馆照明柔和而且浪漫。

6 streaks   

n.（与周围有所不同的）条纹( streak的名词复数 )；（通常指不好的）特征（倾向）；（不断经历成功或失败的）一段时期v.快速移动( streak的第三人称单数 )；使布满条纹

参考例句：

• streaks of grey in her hair 她头上的绺绺白发
• Bacon has streaks of fat and streaks of lean. 咸肉中有几层肥的和几层瘦的。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

7 protracted   

adj.拖延的；延长的v.拖延“protract”的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The war was protracted for four years. 战争拖延了四年。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• We won victory through protracted struggle. 经过长期的斗争，我们取得了胜利。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 metaphor   

n.隐喻，暗喻

参考例句：

• Using metaphor,we say that computers have senses and a memory.打个比方，我们可以说计算机有感觉和记忆力。
• In poetry the rose is often a metaphor for love.玫瑰在诗中通常作为爱的象征。