Reviewer in English

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Born in 1807, became so popular because people loved the musical quality of his poems. He was
national literary figure and a world famous personality at the time of his death in 1882. Longfellow share
his wit through quote using the genre: Victory, Hope, time.

Stressful Events in Longfellow’s life

July 9, 1861, a very unfortunate and tragic accident led to the death of his wife. Fanny, his wife, was with
her daughters, aged five and seven, in the library. Fanny was sealing envelopes by melting wax and as
she was doing that, a lighted match accidentally dropped onto Fanny’s dress which had cuttings of her
children’s hair. He tried to save his wife with a rug, he was not successful. There were terrible burns on
his hands and face so he couldn’t shave so Longfellow grew a beard. He felt depressed and to save
himself, he occupied his time in translating Dante into English and went back to Europe.

The Rainy day Words to Know:

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow dreary- dismal or gloomy
weary- tired
The day is cold, and dark, and dreary;
moldering- crumbling
It rains, and the wind is never weary;
cling- stick to something
The vine still clings to the moldering wall,
blast- mass of air that moves very quickly
But at every gust the dead leaves fall,
cease- to end
And the day is dark and dreary.
repining- complaining
My life is cold, and dark, and dreary;
It rains and the wind is never weary;
My thoughts still cling to the moldering past,
But the hopes of youth fall thick in the blast,
And the days are dark and dreary.

Be still, sad heart! And cease repining;

Behind the clouds is the sun still shining;
Thy fate is the common fate of all,
Into each life some rain must fall,
Some days must be dark and dreary.

Longfellow life that influenced the content of The Rainy Day

1. Longfellow had a full time job as a lecturer and the director of the Modern Languages
Department at Harvard University in 1836. Disappointed by his work situations, he wrote about
this to his father. He told his father about his intolerable work, his desire for the university to
make some changes, his plan of leaving the university, and living on simply “bread and water.”
Despite all the negative feelings stated in his letter, he still stayed in the university for 15 years
more and continued to tolerate the situation.
 2. His father, Stephen Longfellow convinced that Henry take up Law. Henry’s passion for writing all
the more intensified.
3. Longfellow experienced storms of life: one of the more crucial ones happened on his trip to
Europe in 1835 when his wife Mary died, caused by complicated miscarriage. Feeling so
depressed and entertaining thoughts of suicide, he still went on his journey and hoped that the
travel may take his mind away from his problems and sadness.
4. He fell in love with the beautiful and elegant Frances (Fanny) whom he met in the Swiss Alps.
Frances was loved by Henry but she was only able to reciprocate his love for seven years.

Stressful Events in Longfellow’s life

July 9, 1861, a very unfortunate and tragic accident led to the death of his wife. Fanny, his wife,
was with her daughters, aged five and seven, in the library. Fanny was sealing envelopes by
melting wax and as she was doing that, a lighted match accidentally dropped onto Fanny’s dress
which had cuttings of her children’s hair. He tried to save his wife with a rug, he was not
successful. There were terrible burns on his hands and face so he couldn’t shave so Longfellow
grew a beard. He felt depressed and to save himself, he occupied his time in translating Dante
into English and went back to Europe.

Robert Frost
Famous American poet who started writing when he was 15 and continued until he died at the age 88.
Enjoyed wordplay and challenges in creating complex idea in the form of poem use of language. Poetry
lover, great talker and conversationalist. For him, poem is the highest art of language because of its
compression of structure, which gives poetry an advantage over other literary forms. His famous work
“The Road Not Taken” was voted America’s favorite poem.

Frost’s parents had a good education. When Frost was a child, his mother shared Bible stories, tales
about Scotland, classic stories. In school, Frost who was a good student, loved and enjoyed reading
Shakespeare. He also learned Latin and Greek, and he read classic poets.

A Time to Talk No, not as there is a time to talk.

I thrust my hoe in the mellow ground,
When a friend calls to me from the road
Blade-end up and five feet tall, And plod: I go
And slows his horse to a meaning walk,
up to the stone wall
I don’t stand still and look around
For a friendly visit
On all the hills I haven’t hoed,
And shout from where I am, What is it?
Words to Know: Thrust- to push

Meaning- expression or intentional Plod- to walk slowly