Lyric Poem · Nature

Summer begins to have the look

by Emily Dickinson

Peruser of enchanting Book

Reluctantly but sure perceives

A gain upon the backward leaves —

Autumn begins to be inferred

By millinery of the cloud

Or deeper color in the shawl

That wraps the everlasting hill.

The eye begins its avarice

A meditation chastens speech

Some Dyer of a distant tree

Resumes his gaudy industry.

Conclusion is the course of All

At most to be perennial

And then elude stability

Recalls to immortality.

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“Summer begins to have the look” by Emily Dickinson — quilloak.com/poems/summer-begins-to-have-the-look

Quick facts

Poem: Summer begins to have the look
Poet: Emily Dickinson
Length: 16 lines
Form: Lyric Poem
Themes: Nature, Summer, Autumn

Craft notes

How this poem works

Measured from the text on this page, not copied from a summary. Counts are approximate: syllables and rhymes come from the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary, which models General American English, so dialect, older pronunciation, and performance can all change what you hear.

Shape: 16 lines · 4 quatrains
Line length: Long metre. Four eight-syllable lines (8.8.8.8), the hymn stanza's longer cousin.

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Text, source & rights

A traceable edition

Full-text display is based on the committed source record and a United States term-expiry review.

Author record: Emily Dickinson1830–1886
Source record: PoetryDBSummer begins to have the look by emily-dickinson, PoetryDB transcription
Display decision: Full text · United States · reviewed 2026-07-18
Publication record: Not recorded in the imported source
Text fingerprint: SHA-256 3fb02b8b27c3af57…
Editorial handling: Whitespace and stanza breaks normalized for web display; no material wording change recorded.

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Lyric Poem Nature Summer Autumn

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