Walt Whitman described Henry Wadsworth Longfellow as the “universal poet of young people” (Kunitz 10). He is the “poet of the sympathetic gestures” whose poetry was a “universal pastime and delight” (Kinsella 256). During the early 1800s, the literary movement Romanticism became popular in literature. It emphasized passion over reason, imagination over logic, human feelings and individual freedom. Economic and social reform were emphasized and writers, like Longfellow, would base their writings off of medieval times, folklore and legends, nature and common people (Lipking 18/19). With the ambitious vibes and beliefs of the Romanticism period, along with his great childhood and calm nature, Longfellow became one of the most sought after writers of all time (Kinsella 256).
Unlike writers such as Edgar Allen Poe, Longfellow’s poems were “overly optimistic and sentimental” (Kinsella 256). He stood out amongst any other writer of his time. While most authors wrote dark, gothic works and stories, Longfellow’s were happy, positive and encouraging due to his wonderful childhood. He was inspired by his hometown, Portland, the sea, poets like Sir Walter Scott and Samuel Rogers, literature and music were all inspirations to him (Arvin 8/9). These parts of his childhood along with the new, exciting ideas of Romanticism are what shaped Longfellow’s style of writing. This is what drew in his audience because his poems were relatable and were written from the heart. Even though Longfellow went through some hard times with the loss of two wives and suffering from vertigo and peritonitis, he never allowed these complications affect his writing or his calmness (Kunitz 5). His control over his mind and body helped create some of the most beloved p...
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Kunitz, Stanley. "Longfellow, Henry Wadsworth." Biography Reference Bank. The H. W. Wilson Company, 1938. Web. 07 May 2014. .
Lipking, Lawrence. “Romanticism.” World Book Advanced. World Book, 2014. Web. 14 May 2014
Peck, David R. "Let Us, Then, Be Up and Doing." Literary Reference Center. EBSCO Industries, Inc., 2003. Web. 08 May 2014. .
Rabe, Roberto. "Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Biography." Sweet Search. Dulcinea Media, Inc. Web. 07 May 2014. .
Paul Revere’s great ride through the night to save the americans from the huge british force was a big piece of American history during that time. Many have written about Paul Revere but longfellow doesn't tell the whole story. Longfellow's poem doesn't tell the whole story but Paul’s letter does.
Thoreau, Henry David. "Walden." The Heath Anthology of American Literature. Ed. Paul Lauter. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1998. 2107-2141.
Longfellow, Henry Wadsworth. "The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere." The National Center for Public Policy Research. http://www.nationalcenter.org/PaulRevere'sRide.html (accessed October 26, 2009).
... fate; / still achieving, still pursuing, / learn to labor and to wait” (lines 33-6). If humans can remember the mistakes from long ago and simply labor for a better tomorrow, Whittier’s message will have achieved its holy purpose, and Longfellow’s words will be the norm in American society.
Waggoner, Hyatt H. "A Writer of Poems: The Life and Work of Robert Frost," The Times Literary Supplement. April 16, 1971, 433-34.
The Romantic period was an entirely unique era in American history that produced new life philosophies through the focus of nature and exploration resulting in the evolution of the American Dream. Consequently, some of the world’s greatest advancements in arts and literature were accomplished during this time period. Authors such as Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, James Fennimore Cooper, and Oliver Wendell Holmes sparked the imagination of American audiences through newfound literature such as lyrical poetry, myths, legends, folklore, and the new American novel. Romantic age writers emphasized nature, especially in poetry, as an inspiration for imagination and emotion. The American Dream during the Romantic era was to lead a life of emotion and intuition over reasoning through exploration of the countryside and the recognition of natural beauty displayed by imaginative literature that reflected this American Dream.
Ferguson, Margaret W. , Mary Jo Salter, and Jon Stallworthy. The Norton Anthology Of Poetry. shorter fifth edition. New York, New York: W W Norton & Co Inc, 2005. print.
The Industrial Revolution during the late 1700's was a time of great change. People were moving into cities, and watching the rural countryside evolve into a great monstrosity. This happened so fast that the city couldn’t keep up with the growth and the conditions within the city were atrocious. This change made them rethink city life, the all in one location scenario wasn’t appealing anymore. They saw the countryside rural and beautiful, which made it very powerful and surreal. Literature was very pre-defined and boring, but now writers use everything happening around them to create inspirations and to let their imaginations run deep. This change during this time period was known as Romanticism or the Romantic Movement. The Romantic Movement is by far the most important literary period. It empowered writers to act on their emotions and tell the story as it was not as it needed to be. This new form of writing encouraged men and women of all classes to explore novels. Everyone felt involved, like they were a part of the novel, they understood emotion and nature.
Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote The Scarlet Letter in 1850. He also wrote Twice-Told Tales. Hawthorne also wrote short stories like “Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment” and “The Minister’s Black Veil.” Nathaniel Hawthorne used a great deal of imagery and symbolism in his stories. Nathaniel Hawthorne was an early American author whose novels and short stories shaped American Literature.
Henry David Thoreau’s early life began in Concord, Massachusetts on July 12, 1817. He was baptized as David Henry Thoreau later reversing his middle and first names. He was raised with his older siblings John and Helen and his younger sister Sophia. His father managed a local pencil factory, and his mother rented out rooms in the family’s house to boarders. His mother encouraged his love of nature. As a young boy, every morning he would go out for a walk in the woods to seek inspiration and admire the natural beauty. When Thoreau started school, he attended Concord public schools and later, his mother insisted that all the children go to a prestigious private Concord Academy. A bright student Thoreau entered Harvard College in 1833. Unfortunately, for financial reasons Thoreau had to drop out and began teaching a small school in Canton, Massachusetts. In 1838, he left to start his own school with the help of his brother John and it prospered for a while. However it eventually collapsed a few years later when his brother grew ill. Thoreau went back to help his father in the pencil making business. After college, Thoreau met Ralph Waldo Emerson and shortly after they beca...
...uraging his audience. His life painted a picture that he would use to motivate his readers. It was full of tragedy, but he did not dwell too long on it. Longfellow published poetry as a means of therapy for himself and others. He was extremely talented in both academics and the arts. He was able to use his gifts to transform a nation in a time of great need. Little did he know he would become one of the most endured poets of his time. His poems are timeless. They are focused on values that are still relevant to today’s culture. Longfellow strived to be a man of integrity. He encouraged his readers to do the same. He urged people to preserver with courage and to seize the present day. He desired them to
Wystan Hugh Auden was born on February 21, 1907, in provincial York, England. Over the next sixty-six years, he became one of the most prolific poets of the twentieth century. He was a versatile poet who felt that poetry was "a game of knowledge." He boarded at Gresham’s School in Norfolk and in 1925 went to Christ Church at Oxford. Although he initially studied biology, he quickly switched to English. From there he embarked on a literary career that covered almost fifty years. Auden’s influences were plentiful: T. S. Eliot, Emily Dickinson, Gerard Manley Hopkins, Robert Frost, and above all Thomas Hardy. Ironically, future generations of poets, including John Ashbery, W.S. Merwin, James Wright, and James Merrill, would look to Auden as a primary influence in their own poetry.
To the Romantics, the imagination was important. It was the core and foundation of everything they thought about, believed in, and even they way they perceived God itself. The leaders of the Romantic Movement were undoubtedly Samuel Taylor Coleridge and his close friend, William Wordsworth. Both were poets, and both wrote about the imagination. Wordsworth usually wrote about those close to nature, and therefore, in the minds of the Romantics, deeper into the imagination than the ordinary man. Coleridge, however, was to write about the supernatural, how nature extended past the depth of the rational mind.
One must be the leader their own life and have control and not be lead, directed, or guided by someone else. There is no 'normal' way to live life or certain paths directed by someone else that must be followed. It is easy to conform to what everyone else is doing but in order to live your life as fully as possible you must be able to step away and stand out from the crowd. The article, "Whitman and Longfellow: Two Types of The American Poet" by Angus Fletcher says, "The case I shall make for Longfellow is that in his own way he is extraordinarily original." Longfellow was the type of person who did not follow the way anyone else wrote and he did his own thing, which makes sense that he would the write the quote referenced above about cattle. Leading a life of idleness can hurt you, " For the soul is dead that slumbers," (Longfellow 5). When you do nothing in your life but go with the flow and make no effort to embrace your individuality you slowly begin to lose yourself and kill your own soul. Nothing extraordinary was ever discovered by someone who decided to follow someone else but by someone who ventured off and went where no one else seemed to
Wordsworth had two simple ideas that he put into his writing of poetry. One was that “poetry was the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings.” The second idea was that poets should describe simple scenes of nature in the everyday words, which in turn would create an atmosphere through the use of imagination (Compton 2).