Perks of Being a Wallflower
Viloria, Kuhlyn B. BSMT2B
There is no frigate like a book
There is no frigate like a book
To take us lands away,
Nor any coursers like a page
Of prancing poetry.
This traverse may the poorest take
Without oppress of toll;
How frugal is the chariot
That bears a human soul!
Emily Dickinson
Explanations:
Lines 1-2
There is no Frigate like a Book
To take us Lands away * To start us off, the speaker compares a book to a frigate, or a big ship. * What to ships do? They take us places. * These lines say that a book is even better than a frigate. A book is like the best boat ever, which carries us away to far off lands.
Lines 3-4
Nor any Coursers like a Page
Of prancing Poetry— * Here the speaker compares a book (in this case, a book of poetry) to a high-spirited, light-footed horse ("courser" is an old-timey word for a knight's horse). And guess what? She says that reading is even better than taking a ride on this great horse. * Line 4 refers to poetry as "prancing," which cleverly plays upon the terms commonly used to talk about poetic meter, like "metrical foot" – for more on this concept, check out the "Form and Meter" section.
Lines 5-6
This Traverse may the poorest take
Without oppress of Toll— * Books may cost money, but reading them is free. So, anyone with access to books (like, say, through local library or Project Gutenberg) is able to travel in these magical bookmobiles along the superhighways of the imagination. * The speaker expresses this simple idea by saying that even the poorest person can take this kind of "Traverse," or journey, without ever being "oppressed" by having to stop at a tollbooth and pay.
Lines 7-8
How frugal is the Chariot
That bears the Human soul. * "Frugal" isn't a word we use that often anymore, since most of you probably don't remember the old-school Eighties cooking show The Frugal Gourmet. Basically, it just means "inexpensive," or "affordable." * Similarly, we don't
There is no frigate like a book
There is no frigate like a book
To take us lands away,
Nor any coursers like a page
Of prancing poetry.
This traverse may the poorest take
Without oppress of toll;
How frugal is the chariot
That bears a human soul!
Emily Dickinson
Explanations:
Lines 1-2
There is no Frigate like a Book
To take us Lands away * To start us off, the speaker compares a book to a frigate, or a big ship. * What to ships do? They take us places. * These lines say that a book is even better than a frigate. A book is like the best boat ever, which carries us away to far off lands.
Lines 3-4
Nor any Coursers like a Page
Of prancing Poetry— * Here the speaker compares a book (in this case, a book of poetry) to a high-spirited, light-footed horse ("courser" is an old-timey word for a knight's horse). And guess what? She says that reading is even better than taking a ride on this great horse. * Line 4 refers to poetry as "prancing," which cleverly plays upon the terms commonly used to talk about poetic meter, like "metrical foot" – for more on this concept, check out the "Form and Meter" section.
Lines 5-6
This Traverse may the poorest take
Without oppress of Toll— * Books may cost money, but reading them is free. So, anyone with access to books (like, say, through local library or Project Gutenberg) is able to travel in these magical bookmobiles along the superhighways of the imagination. * The speaker expresses this simple idea by saying that even the poorest person can take this kind of "Traverse," or journey, without ever being "oppressed" by having to stop at a tollbooth and pay.
Lines 7-8
How frugal is the Chariot
That bears the Human soul. * "Frugal" isn't a word we use that often anymore, since most of you probably don't remember the old-school Eighties cooking show The Frugal Gourmet. Basically, it just means "inexpensive," or "affordable." * Similarly, we don't