There Comes a Warning Like a Spy

There Comes a Warning Like a Spy - meaning Summary

Sudden Notice of Loss

The poem registers a sudden, small signal that something important has shifted. Dickinson likens this warning to a spy and to a shortened breath of day, conveying surprise and insufficient time to respond. The image of summer slipping away frames the moment as a quiet, inevitable loss or transition. Overall it sketches the shock of change’s stealthy arrival and the brief, fragile awareness that follows.