Summary
In the first two stanzas, the speaker makes a journey to the sea. She sees some fantastical visions of "mermaids" as well as slightly more grounded ones of "frigates" extending "hempen hands" out to her. This makes the speaker feel small, like a "mouse." In the third stanza, the poem takes a turn. The speaker describes herself being slowly drawn into the water as it moves past her "shoe," "apron," "belt," and "boddice." Her emotion shifts from wonder to fear.
Analysis
In this poem, Dickinson tackles ideas around looming danger and natural mystery. The speaker's trip to the ocean sets off a series of dramatic encounters that dramatically alter her perception of both the water and the larger world. In offering a more complex view of the speaker's experience, Dickinson depicts a spectrum of feelings. The poem is marked by many of Dickinson's stylistic trademarks, including dashes and capitalizations, which further enhance the impression of strangeness with which she imbues this undersea environment.
The poem's opening two lines show a fairly everyday picture of a trip to the beach: "I started Early - Took my Dog - / And visited the Sea -." So far, nothing appears overly dramatic or surprising. But from there the tone changes almost immediately when the speaker encounters "Mermaids in the Basement" who come "out to look at" her. This markedly mystical scene puts the speaker in a state of wonder about what she is seeing. At the same time, it shows her as being perceived, subtly reminding the reader that this is not an encounter without risk. They have come out to see her, meaning she is not the only one doing the observing. The speaker then catches a glimpse of a more conventional maritime object: a boat. More specifically, she sees "frigates" extending their "hempen hands" (strong, nautical ropes) out to her. Fittingly, in contrast with the "mermaids" being in the watery "basement," these ships are "in the Upper Floor." The "frigates" are the more normal image and they are part of the brighter, less mysterious upper section of the water. In these first two stanzas, the speaker has already cataloged a whole range of ocean environments. In the following two lines ("Presuming Me to be a Mouse – / Aground – opon the Sands –") the speaker returns the focus to herself. She feels small in the presence (and gaze) of these "mermaids" and "frigates." The tenor of these initial parts is a mixture of awe and trepidation. The speaker is amazed by what she sees but also somewhat frightened by its vastness. This feeling of unease is amplified as the poem continues.
The poem's third stanza moves into a new register. The speaker is clearly afraid. In the first two lines ("But no Man moved Me - till the Tide / Went past my simple Shoe -") she personifies the sea as a man and implies that he poses a threat to her. She also places herself in a certain state of romantic innocence by stating that he has never been "moved" by a "man" before. The descriptions that follow are parallel. The speaker shows the water moving up her body: "And past my Apron – and my Belt / And past my Boddice - too." The cumulative impact of this listing is a sense of dread and panic. The water's movement is gradual, but the speaker feels every part of its undesired advances. She is "moved," but it is against her wishes. Describing the sea as male has a twofold effect. It marks the ocean's forceful harshness while also offering a perception of men as constant, overwhelming, and dangerous. The earlier scenes of wonder have given way to outright fear. The speaker is not only seen but is now being dragged into the water.
The first half of the poem sets up the speaker's initial journey while intimating some of its darker elements more and more prominently. What begins as a relatively casual outing turns mysterious and then dramatic. By the close of the first half, the speaker finds that her body is placed in jeopardy by the unwavering force of the sea.
