The Summer Day Mary Oliver Summary

In the poem, “The Summer Day”, by Mary Oliver, there are many examples poetic devices that are extremely effective and help to reinforce the thematic theme of the poem. A few that I found to be particularly effective are the examples of metaphors, repetition and irony.

The most interesting poetic device found in the poem was the use of extended metaphor. It is evident in lines three to ten:

Who made the grasshopper?
This grasshopper, I mean – the one who flung herself out of the grass, the one who is eating sugar out of my hand, who is moving her jaws back and forth instead of up and down - who is gazing around with her enormous and complicated eyes.
Now she lifts her pale forearms and thoroughly washes her face.
Now she snaps
The grasshopper is being compared to a human’s life. Though it lives such a simple life, eating sugar out of the poets hand, moving her jaw back and forth, she still lives a beautiful enough life to be able to snap her wings open and float away peacefully. This is an example of an extended metaphor because this metaphor is developed over a number of lines as opposed to only one. The poem also seems to be written from a Buddhist point of view, which is reflected through these lines. The Buddhists believe that life should be simple and stress-free, which is exactly how these lines perceive how the grasshopper lives life. These lines are also phrased in a way that is very carefree and fun. This is a similar representation to a typical summer day. The theme of the poem is also that life is precious, and like the grasshopper, we should enjoy each day, enjoy the sun in the summer, enjoy strolling through the fields, and live life to its fullest.
The use of repetition is more evident in the first half of the poem as opposed to the second half. There are many phrases that are repeated such as “Who made the…” in the first three lines of the poem, or “the one who…” in the fifth and sixth line. This repetition creates rhyme and adds emphasis to the phrases that are being repeated. For example, the first three lines all start with: “Who made the…”. This simple phrase adds emphasis on the second part of the sentace which is what changes each time. This slight difference creates a dramatic effect while adding emphasis for a more effective question to the reader. The emphasis adds drama to the section of the phrase that is not being repeated which helps the reader understand what he/she is reading. This emphasis and repition also helps the reader imagine the imagery that is placed in the poem. There are a few examples of this including lines 5-6, 7-8, and 9-10: the one who has flung herself out of the grass, the one who is eating sugar out of my hands who is moving her jaws back and forth instead of up and down- who is gazing around with her enormous and complicated eyes.
Now she lifts her pale forearms and thoroughly washes her