“Thoughts” about Longfellow
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Some of you did not seem to have read the handout: http://www.flatheadreservation.org/index.php/phs/printer/writing_about_poetry/

The handout I gave you included directions such as these: “Don’t assume, without good evidence, that the poem must mean something other than what it says. Avoid importing your own fantasies into the poem.” “Don’t rely too much on summary or paraphrase.” “Don’t waste time on generalisations about poetry or information about the poet.” “Phrases like ‘When I first read this poem, I thought . . .are of little interest.’”

Instead, you were asked to “Focus on interesting metaphors, allusions etc; try to show how they contribute to meaning, tone, effect.” You can talk about how the poem’s meter contributes to the effect it has. You could think about each of the themes you’ve been asked to think about while we read Longfellow to see how your poem might relate to that theme: the use of traditional forms, the role of his traditional Christian religion, and his development of patriotic themes.

The assignment was to write three or four thoughts about the poem you are considering. “Longfellow worked hard on this poem,” isn’t really a thought. Neither is “You have to pay attention to the sentences to understand them.” The following are thoughts, or the beginnings of thoughts:

Time marches on. This is nature. But man, has a time limit here on earth.
Man will die, but the tide will continue to rise and fall, whether he is alive to see it or not. The tide is forever young, while man continues getting older. Man has a time limit, while tide and time have none.
| Posted on 2006-08-14 | by Approved Guest

The poem makes more sense when compared to his earlier poem, “A Psalm of Life, “ which he wrote as a young man. In fact the poem is quite solemn in comparison as it portrays each person as making little difference on life as a whole. In “a Psalm of life” he states that we can in fact leave footprints on the sands of time. In this poem, however, he instead notes that the footprints will be erased. In other words, we will not leave much of a mark on human society, as we will be quickly forgotten. Life will go on whether we are in it or not. As a young man he portrays a certain sense of optimism whereas in this poem that is lost.
| Posted on 2006-04-10 | by Approved Guest

This poem illustrates a theme of death by using the ocean as a symbol of life and the town as a symbol of death. The is an overall progression that the stanzas go through. The first stanza is about the actual death of the traveler. The second stanza is about what happens after his death. The third stanza is about how life goes on even if someone dies. The tone of the poem is very accepting and calm. The author does this by using words that relate to the ocean, which most people associate with serenity and tranquility. This tone and use of words means that the author is ready to understand that he is going to die one day or another and that it is something that he cannot avoid.

This poem conveys a general message about death. The author associates darkness with death, ocean with life, and light with heaven. He is basically saying that once a person reaches death, sometimes their legacy is forgotten, but no matter what they will go to heaven (or hell) and never return to life. It is also an indirect message that states that a person should do all they can in life; once life is gone it will never come back. They should be all they can be and do nothing to regret past actions. The author also shows that death is unavoidable, but that does not mean it must be feared. The rising and falling of the tides show that death is constant and forever and that a person cannot stop death from coming.
| Posted on 2006-01-23 | by Approved Guest

Invoking the elements of popular romanticism that was popular in many writers’ works of the time period in which the poem was written, Longfellow portrays death as a fact of life, an inevitable occurrence to be accepted, but not feared. The symbolic nature of the tides suggest that death, like the ocean, is ceaseless, and forever. Just as one cannot stop the tides of the ocean erasing their “footprints in the sands”, or rather their existence in the world, one cannot stop death from claiming his/her life.
| Posted on 2005-11-29 | by Approved Guest

Here’s a guide written for elementary school children that reviews the basics: http://www.home2teach.com/GuideLitAn.html

Here’s an essay about “A Psalm of Life” written by a 10-year-old that, though it is too simple for high school writing, at least focused on a technique the poem uses (figurative language) and uses examples to illustrate ideas:

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote a poem called “A Psalm of Life.” In it he explains how to live life in the best possible manner.  His use of figurative language makes the poem easier to envision. It also makes the poem more intriguing.

He used the phrase “Tell me not in mournful numbers” for his first sentence to draw you into the poem. His words help me visualize gloomy people all saying sad, melancholy nonsense. People living a dreary and gray life tell about tragic happenings.

The 7th and 8th lines, “Not enjoyment and not sorrow/ Is our destined end or way/ But to act that each tomorrow/ Find us farther than today,” begins the idea of life marching along. I imagine people climbing a mountain; the summit is life’s goal. All people are going up the mountain, but they can choose to go back down to start their life again.  Each person can control their life, yet they don’t know what is around the next rock.

Longfellow also uses very descriptive words that, though used in everyday speech, the way he says them gives the poem a more detailed mental picture. One example, his line “Still, like muffled drums are beating/ Funeral marches to the grave,” explains how our life just plods along.  I can envision people in a dragging procession, slowly making their way to the grave. He describes so that I can picture everyone living only so that they can die.

A mental picture of great people making their mark on the “sand of time” is created by verses 7 and 8.  However, I can picture people being forgotten as waves wash away their “Footprints on the sand.” “A forlorn and shipwrecked brother/ Seeing shall take heart again,” I envision a depressed person looking through memories of great people, then getting the will to go back up the mountain.

Longfellow’s use of figurative language makes this work of art easy to visualize. This offers the poem a more significant meaning.

That’s much better than the work I received from this class.

Here’s a completed essay by a professional writer about one of Longfellow’s poems: http://www.danagioia.net/essays/elongfellow.htm

Assignment: Due by end of period: Write three thoughts about your poem. Each thought should be more than 150 words long. These should be written in standard English, punctuated and spelled correctly. They should use examples from the poem to make clear what you are saying. Since this is an informal set of notes, the three thoughts do not need to be related to each other or unified by a single thesis.

The Tuesday assignment was worth 10 points--I scored it last night. Don’t ask to make it up unless you were absent. If you were absent, hand it in tomorrow. This should be a separate set of thoughts from today’s assignment. Today’s assignment is worth 15 points. Generic comments about how much you like or dislike the poem won’t be given any points. Leaving the text to talk in general about things that aren’t referred to by the text won’t be given any points. Talk about your feelings won’t be given any points (unless you make it clear what poetic technique Longfellow is using to evoke just such feelings in readers).

I’ll score it using the 7th grade rubric from the California state standards for scoring “responses to literature” :

Response to Literature


Posted by Michael L Umphrey on 11/15 at 08:52 PM
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© 2006 Michael L. Umphrey