The speaker is revealing his fear of the snake. Meeting this creature, this “narrow fellow,” either “attended or alone” causes “tighter breathing.” It causes the speaker to feel “zero at the bone,” or to be chilled to the bone. The final stanza describes an irrational fear.
Explanation:
Why was the snake called a narrow fellow? By using the word “like”, the speaker effectively personifies the snake. She has already called him a “fellow” and suggested that he “occasionally rides” thereby giving him human qualities from the start. Now, he is a snake who prefers a certain type of home. This further personifies the snake.
The book that I am reading is Man in Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl. the setting is at the Auswitch's concentration camp in the time of World War 2 and the main character is the author himself. The purpose of the book is to find meaning in every situation a human is being exposed to.
