Essay about Henry Wadsworth Longfellow - 940 Words

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow A Fellow’s Long Worth How does one describe a poet when he has already described himself with his own words? Although Henry Wadsworth Longfellow isn’t popular, he is such a poet. As described by Arnold Bennett, Longfellow is the chief minor poet of the English language. Among a harsh lineup of critics, however, they claimed he fell short of literary. This is quite the contrary. Longfellow attended Bowdoin college, near Portland, Maine where he was born and raised. The college offered him the newly formed position as chair of modern languages. Two things are striking about this event: the informality of the academic approach to language studies and the obvious natural gift that Longfellow possessed†¦show more content†¦Instead of scribbling lofty lyrics and inscrutable stanzas, Longfellow’s poetry is simple, flows with a definite rhyme scheme, and allows anybody to encompass themselves with Longfellow’s visions. Some poems dealing with nature and his visions are Daylight and Moonlight, Hymn to the Night, Daybreak and The Rainy Day. Each one describes a different time of day, whether it personifies the wind in Daybreak or gives a life lesson about gloomy days in The Rainy Day. Unlike his contemporaries, Emerson, Poe, and Whitman, his poetry isn’t far-fetched or musty, trying to collapse the mind with theory and philosophy. Even in his longer works, like Hiawatha, The Skeleton in Armor and Paul Revere’s Ride, Longfellow takes his pen and tells fervent stories that echo inside the reader. He wished to write not only for ‘the few who think’ but also for ‘the many who feel,’ assuming a certain community of nature, interest, and cultural inheritance between himself and his readers (Wagenknecht 22). Much like Thomas Paine in The Crisis Papers, Longfellow knew his readers, and although they weren’t educated in the fundamentals of poetry, they were educated enough to read. This powered his poetry and therefore nature and emotion gorged his writing and propelled it forward, even if some critics and historians view him as an underdog. It is time to rediscover Longfellow,Show MoreRelatedHenry Wadsworth Longfellow2130 Words   |  8 Pagesintertwined. It is a song about a a disturbed kid going on a killing spree. Unlike Foster the People, people adore Henry Wadsworth Longfe llow, a nineteenth century poet, not because he had a good rhythm, but because he intertwines musicality and imagery. He merges sight and sound to establish a cinematic orchestra and paints a vivid image full of depth and personality. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow incorporates religion through the influence of nature and the strong presence of musicality in â€Å"The Cross ofRead More Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Essay793 Words   |  4 Pages1807, in Portland, Maine, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was raised in a Puritan family with three brothers and four sisters. While growing up he kept a good relationship with his family members. Longfellow spent many years in foreign countries to further his horizons. Longfellow’s solitary life style would not be expected from his extreme success in poetry (Williams, p.26). nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Longfellow’s boyhood home was built by his grandfather, Peleg Wadsworth, in 1784-86, and was theRead MoreHenry Wadsworth Longfellow : A Psalm Of Life1508 Words   |  7 Pages Henry Wadsworth Longfellow: A Psalm of Life Biographical Information Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was born to parents Stephen and Zilpah Wadsworth Longfellow on February 27th, 1807. Born to an established family in Portland, Maine, his father as a successful lawyer and politician, but also a trustee of Bowdoin College in Maine, and he sent Henry there at age 15. In the liberal arts college, Longfellow published poems and essays and fell in love with poetry. His passion was encouraged by his motherRead More An Analysis Of The Indomitable Spirit Of Man In Henry Wadsworth Longfellow1686 Words   |  7 Pages Henry Ford, the automobile magnate, once stated that the quot;world was built to develop character, and we must learn that the setbacks and grieves which we endure help us in our marching onward† (Daily Quotations Network). Man has always struggled with uncontrollable aspects of his environment, but his ability to overcome these seemingly indomitable obstacles has earned recognition from numerous classical writers and poets, including Henry Wad sworth Longfellow. â€Å"One of the real American PoetsRead MoreHenry Wadsworth Longfellow: The Great Honored and Criticized Poet911 Words   |  4 PagesHenry Wadsworth Longfellow was a successful pet in his lifetime. In his childhood, he was so intelligent that he entered Bowdoin College at the age of fifteen. He worked at Bowdoin College and Harvard College for 19 years due to his eyesight. In addition, his work sold million copies. At his later time, his birthday became a national holiday, and he was the first man who was honored by Britain society. Despite these glories, he suffered from the death of his two wives, Mary Storer Potter and FrancesRead MoreLiterary Analysis: The Rainy Day by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow1512 Words   |  7 PagesLiterary Analysis: The Rainy Day by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow - Siddiqui Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s â€Å"Rainy Day† uses the themes of lost and renewed hope, youth and grief to show how much our past and future experiences affect our lives and how though we face multiple struggles in life we can overcome them. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was born February 28th, 1807 and died March 24th, 1882. He was inspired to write poetry from Romanticism. Not only did he accomplish writing many pieces of poetryRead MoreHenry Wadsworth Longfellow s Poetry Of The Nineteenth Century1857 Words   |  8 PagesHenry Wadsworth Longfellow epitomized poetry of the nineteenth century, yet remained living, breathing figure through the aisles of history with his work. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was born in Portland, Maine—then still part of Massachusetts—on February 27, 1807, the second son in a family of eight children. His mother, Zilpah Wadsworth, found herself the daughter of a Revolutionary War hero. His father, Stephen Longfellow, served a prominent Portland lawyer and later a member of Congress.HenryRead MoreThe Fireside Poets: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and Oliver Wendel Holmes1354 Words   |  6 PagesHenry Wadsworth Longfellow was born on February 27, 1807 in Portland, Maine to the mother Zilpah Wadsworth and the father Stephen Longfellow who was a politician and a lawyer. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was an influential American poet, translator (He was the first American poet to translate Dante Alighieris epic poem The Divine Comedy) and a professor at the Harvard University. One of Longfellows most pretentious work is Evangeline: A tale of Acadie, an epic poem which follows the Acadian girlRead More`` Mezzo Cammin `` By Henry Wadsworth Longfellow And When I Have A Fear1155 Words   |  5 PagesIn the poems â€Å"Mezzo cammin† by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and â€Å" When I have a fear† by John keats, both poems themes are about the imminence of death and their unfulfilled dreams in life. There are many similarities in the poem but they are mostly in the beginning of the poems, the conclusion on the other hand is not similar. In â€Å"Mezzo cammin’’ the main theme of the poem is the reminisce of his dreams from the past. Keats poems emphasize a theme of the waste of a physical life and his fears associatedRead MoreHenry Wadsworth Longfellow1100 Words   |  5 Pagesanswer. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow expresses his beliefs of people’s purpose in life by writing about his own experiences and how he has allowed them to s hape him and his writing. Through Longfellow’s poem A Psalm of Life, the emphasis on living life to the fullest is accentuated through his beliefs of being courageous and living life for the sake of doing, rather than for the sake of death. Courage means to have guts. This quality is one that is believed to be crucial in life to Longfellow. When