"Nature" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

 

Nature

As a fond mother, when the day is o'er,

Leads by the hand her little child to bed,

Half willing, half reluctant to be led,

And leave his broken playthings on the floor,

Still gazing at them through the open door,

Nor wholly reassured and comforted

By promises of others in their stead,

Which, though more splendid, may not please him more;

So Nature deals with us, and takes away

Our playthings one by one, and by the hand

Leads us to rest so gently, that we go

Scarce knowing if we wish to go or stay,

Being too full of sleep to understand

How far the unknown transcends the what we know.

Enjoy the poem with beautiful music.

poem video👇

https://youtu.be/CFfkClgpzNM

Who wrote the poem "Nature"?

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (February 27, 1807 – March 24, 1882)

 

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was an American poet and educator. He was one of the most famous American poets of the 19th century, both domestically and internationally, and was one of the few American writers honored in the Poets' Corner of Westminster Abbey. Longfellow was born in Portland, Maine (then still part of Massachusetts). He studied at Bowdoin College and became a professor there and later at Harvard University. His poems were known for their musicality, often including stories of mythology and legend.

"Nature" explanation

In the poem, the speaker compares man’s life, guided by nature, with a child, led to bed by its mother. Just like a child, half willing to go to bed due to fatigue, half reluctant because of its desire to play more, man is guided through life by nature towards the final destination: death (or afterlife).

"The Wild Swans at Coole" by William Butler Yeats

 

The Wild Swans at Coole

The trees are in their autumn beauty,

The woodland paths are dry,

Under the October twilight the water

Mirrors a still sky;

Upon the brimming water among the stones

Are nine-and-fifty swans.

 

The nineteenth autumn has come upon me

Since I first made my count;

I saw, before I had well finished,

All suddenly mount

And scatter wheeling in great broken rings

Upon their clamorous wings.

 

I have looked upon those brilliant creatures,

And now my heart is sore.

All's changed since I, hearing at twilight,

The first time on this shore,

The bell-beat of their wings above my head,

Trod with a lighter tread.

 

Unwearied still, lover by lover,

They paddle in the cold

Companionable streams or climb the air;

Their hearts have not grown old;

Passion or conquest, wander where they will,

Attend upon them still.

 

But now they drift on the still water,

Mysterious, beautiful;

Among what rushes will they build,

By what lake's edge or pool

Delight men's eyes when I awake some day

To find they have flown away?

Enjoy the poem with beautiful music.

poem video👇

https://youtu.be/B6jlyjS4hlo

Who wrote the poem "The Wild Swans at Coole"?

William Butler Yeats (June 13, 1865 – January 28, 1939)

William Butler Yeats was an Irish poet, playwright, prose writer, and is widely considered as one of the greatest poets of the 20^th century. He was born to the Protestant, Anglo-Irish community that considered themselves English people born in Ireland and had largely controlled the economic, political, and social life of Ireland. However, Yeats strongly affirmed his Irish nationality and found inspiration in Irish legends and the occult in his early career. Later his poetry became more physical and realistic. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1923. 

"The Wild Swans at Coole" explanation

In the poem, the speaker is watching beautiful swans at a lake in a place called Coole, where he often visited for the past 19 years. Although he has grown old, the swans and the beautiful scenery seems the same. In contrast to stability and the beauty of nature, the poem reminds the reader of transience and frailty of human life.

"Tree at my Window" by Robert Frost

 

Tree at my Window

Tree at my window, window tree,

My sash is lowered when night comes on;

But let there never be curtain drawn

Between you and me.

 

Vague dream-head lifted out of the ground,

And thing next most diffuse to cloud,

Not all your light tongues talking aloud

Could be profound.

 

But tree, I have seen you taken and tossed,

And if you have seen me when I slept,

You have seen me when I was taken and swept

And all but lost.

 

That day she put our heads together,

Fate had her imagination about her,

Your head so much concerned with outer,

Mine with inner, weather.

Enjoy the poem with beautiful music.

poem video👇 

https://youtu.be/rVVTIWu8M2Q

Who wrote the poem "Tree at my Window"?

Robert Frost (March 26, 1874 – January 29, 1963)

Robert Frost was an American poet who was born in San Francisco, California. Frost’s life was marked by grief and loss. When he was 11, his father died of tuberculosis, leaving just eight dollars. Frost’s mother died of cancer when he was 26. Mental illness ran in his family. He and his mother suffered from depression, and his sister and his daughter were committed to mental hospitals. Using realistic depictions of rural life, his poems often examined complex social and philosophical themes. Frost’s first book was published at the age of 40, but he ended up winning four Pulitzer Prizes for poetry and becoming the most famous poet of his time.

"Tree at my Window"  explanation

In the poem, the speaker expresses companionship and a special bond that he feels with a tree outside his window. While he went through ups and downs of life, the tree has always been there with him. The speaker alludes to his inner struggle (inner weather) and the solace he finds in nature.

"When We Two Parted" by George Gordon Byron

 

When We Two Parted

When we two parted

In silence and tears,

Half broken-hearted

To sever for years,

Pale grew thy cheek and cold,

Colder thy kiss;

Truly that hour foretold

Sorrow to this.

 

The dew of the morning

Sunk chill on my brow—

It felt like the warning

Of what I feel now.

Thy vows are all broken,

And light is thy fame;

I hear thy name spoken,

And share in its shame.

 

They name thee before me,

A knell to mine ear;

A shudder comes o'er me—

Why wert thou so dear?

They know not I knew thee,

Who knew thee too well—

Long, long shall I rue thee,

Too deeply to tell.

 

In secret we met—

In silence I grieve,

That thy heart could forget,

Thy spirit deceive.

If I should meet thee

After long years,

How should I greet thee?—

With silence and tears.

Enjoy the poem with beautiful music.

poem video👇

https://youtu.be/VAi0CyviA0M

Who wrote the poem "When We Two Parted"?

George Gordon Byron (Lord Byron) (January 22, 1788 – April 19, 1824)

George Gordon Byron, a.k.a. Lord Byron, was an English poet and politician. He was one of the leading figures of Romantic Movement (attempts to dispel the effects of scientific, rational trend and to restore magic and wonder to the humanistic world) and often considered as one of the greatest English poets. He travelled extensively across Europe, which inspired most of his works. He fought in the Greek War of Independence against the Ottoman Empire and was revered as a national hero by the Greeks. He died at the age of 36 from a fever contracted during the war.

"When We Two Parted" explanation

‘When We Two Parted ’ was written in 1817, the first year of the poet’s exile from England and a year after the separation with his wife. It is unclear whether the poem was written about a particular person or relationship from Byron’s life. It might be about his relationship with his wife or his half-sister, Augusta Leigh, with whom Byron was rumored to have been in a sexual relationship. Or it might be about his regret over his numerous reckless affairs. Still, the poem depicts beautifully the lingering feelings of love, betrayal, and sorrow of a heartbroken lover.

"Life's Harmonies" by Ella Wheeler Wilcox

 

Life's Harmonies

Let no man pray that he know not sorrow,

Let no soul ask to be free from pain,

For the gall of to-day is the sweet of to-morrow,

And the moment's loss is the lifetime's gain.

 

Through want of a thing does its worth redouble,

Through hunger's pangs does the feast content,

And only the heart that has harbored trouble,

Can fully rejoice when joy is sent.

 

Let no man shrink from the bitter tonics

Of grief, and yearning, and need, and strife,

For the rarest chords in the soul's harmonies,

Are found in the minor strains of life.

Enjoy the poem with beautiful music.

poem video👇

https://youtu.be/BqgMNnQs-jc

Who wrote the poem "Life's Harmonies"?

Ella Wheeler Wilcox (November 5, 1850 – October 30, 1919)

Ella Wheeler Wilcox was an American author and poet who wrote “Solitude,” which contains the famous lines “Laugh, and the world laughs with you; weep, and you weep alone.” Popular among people rather than among literary critics, she often displayed in her poems cheerful and optimistic sentiments in plain and rhyming words. After she married Robert Wilcox in 1884, the couple became interested in spiritualism and promised each other that whoever died first would return and communicate with the other. After her husband died in 1916 after over 30 years of marriage, she was overwhelmed by grief and waited long to hear from her deceased husband in vain. She also believed in reincarnation. She died of cancer in 1919.

"Life's Harmonies" explanation

Sometimes, life seems full of sufferings. Tragedies will happen, and things that may go wrong generally tend to go wrong. Some get frustrated, whine and complain, making things worse, while others focus on the solutions, maintaining positive attitudes. It all depends on the perspectives. Anything that is not growing is dying, and growth inevitably entails pain and suffering. All we have to do is to remain vigilant to be on the right path and to embrace the right kind of sufferings and be grateful at every waking moment.

"Love and Friendship" by Emily Bronte

 

Love and Friendship

Love is like the wild rose-briar,

Friendship like the holly-tree

The holly is dark when the rose-briar blooms

But which will bloom most constantly?

 

The wild-rose briar is sweet in the spring,

Its summer blossoms scent the air;

Yet wait till winter comes again

And who will call the wild-briar fair?

 

Then scorn the silly rose-wreath now

And deck thee with the holly's sheen,

That when December blights thy brow

He may still leave thy garland green.

 

 

Enjoy the poem with beautiful music.

poem video👇 

https://youtu.be/z2W3cqKL8wI

Who wrote the poem "Love and Friendship"?

Emily Brontë (July 30, 1818 – December 19, 1848)

Emily Jane Brontë was an English poet and novelist. She published poems under the pseudonym Ellis Bell with her sisters Emily and Charlotte, and by herself. She also wrote her only novel, Wuthering Heights, which is widely considered a classic of English literature. She died of tuberculosis at the age of 30.

"Love and Friendship" explanation

In the poem, the speaker likens romantic love and friendship to different plants and compares them. She argues that, in their peaks, romantic love may look sweet and splendid, but when the time gets harsh, love can be so fragile while friendship often lasts longer.

“All the world’s a stage” by William Shakespeare

 

“All the world’s a stage”

(from As You Like It, spoken by Jaques)

 

All the world’s a stage,

And all the men and women merely players;

They have their exits and their entrances;

And one man in his time plays many parts,

His acts being seven ages. At first the infant,

Mewling and puking in the nurse’s arms;

And then the whining school-boy, with his satchel

And shining morning face, creeping like snail

Unwillingly to school. And then the lover,

Sighing like furnace, with a woeful ballad

Made to his mistress’ eyebrow. Then a soldier,

Full of strange oaths, and bearded like the pard,

Jealous in honour, sudden and quick in quarrel,

Seeking the bubble reputation

Even in the cannon’s mouth. And then the justice,

In fair round belly with good capon lin’d,

With eyes severe and beard of formal cut,

Full of wise saws and modern instances;

And so he plays his part. The sixth age shifts

Into the lean and slipper’d pantaloon,

With spectacles on nose and pouch on side;

His youthful hose, well sav’d, a world too wide

For his shrunk shank; and his big manly voice,

Turning again toward childish treble, pipes

And whistles in his sound. Last scene of all,

That ends this strange eventful history,

Is second childishness and mere oblivion;

Sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything.

Enjoy the poem with beautiful music.

poem video👇

https://youtu.be/9-5Y9e8_E4o

Who wrote the poem “All the world’s a stage”?

William Shakespeare (April 26, 1564 – April 23, 1616)

William Shakespeare was an English playwright, poet, and actor of the Renaissance era. He is regarded as the greatest writer in the English language, often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon." Few public records remain about his private life, causing speculations about his physical appearances, sexuality, religious beliefs and the authorship of some of his works. His works demonstrate a wide range of human emotions and conflicts, touching so many people's minds throughout the world for over 400 years.

“All the world’s a stage” explanation

‘All the world’s a stage’ is a monologue of Jaques from Shakespeare’s play As You Like It, a five-act pastoral comedy (cherishing country life). The speaker talks about seven stages (from infancy to death) people go through as they age and different roles they play in each stage. This monologue echoes the motto of the Globe Theatre which was opened in 1599, the same year when the play was written. The motto was “Totus mundus agit histrionem,” which means “all the Globe’s a stage.”

"For You O Democracy" by Walt Whitman

 

For You O Democracy

Come, I will make the continent indissoluble,

I will make the most splendid race the sun ever shone upon,

I will make divine magnetic lands,

With the love of comrades,

With the life-long love of comrades.

 

I will plant companionship thick as trees along all the rivers of America, and along the shores of the great lakes, and all over the prairies,

I will make inseparable cities with their arms about each other’s necks,

By the love of comrades,

By the manly love of comrades.

 

For you these from me, O Democracy, to serve you ma femme!

For you, for you I am trilling these songs.

 

Enjoy the poem with beautiful music.

poem video👇

https://youtu.be/7HfpEZ_WD3g

Who wrote the poem "For You O Democracy"?

Walt Whitman (May 31, 1819 – March 26, 1892)

Walt Whitman was an American poet, essayist, and journalist. Whitman is one of the most important American poets, often called the father of free verse. His major poetry collection, Leaves of Grass, was first published in 1855 at his own expense and became popular and controversial due to its overt sensuality. Whitman greatly admired Abraham Lincoln, and on Lincoln’s death, he wrote famous poems, “O Captain! My Captain!” and “When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom’d.” Modernist poet Ezra Pound called Whitman “America’s poet… He is America.”

"For You O Democracy" explanation

In the poem, the speaker expresses his desire to build a strong, democratic state, based upon love, companionship, and patriotism of people. Whitman was known as a poet of democracy because of his exaltation of democracy, rooted deeply in his faith in the inherent dignity of the common man.

"Bed in Summer" by Robert Louis Stevenson

 

Bed in Summer

In winter I get up at night

And dress by yellow candle-light.

In summer, quite the other way,

I have to go to bed by day.

 

I have to go to bed and see

The birds still hopping on the tree,

Or hear the grown-up people's feet

Still going past me in the street.

 

And does it not seem hard to you,

When all the sky is clear and blue,

And I should like so much to play,

To have to go to bed by day?

Enjoy the poem with beautiful music.

poem video👇 

https://youtu.be/GbK0a6P6X6I

Who wrote the poem "Bed in Summer"?

Robert Louis Stevenson 

(November 13, 1850 – December 3, 1894)

Robert Louis Stevenson was a Scottish novelist, essayist, poet, and travel writer. From an early age, Stevenson suffered from serious bronchial illnesses. Despite his poor health, Stevenson continued to write prolifically and travelled widely. His best known works include “Treasure Island” and “Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.” He gained great literary fame based on his profound ideas and catchy writing style.

"Bed in Summer" explanation

In this short poem intended for children, the speaker (a child) doesn’t want to go to bed while there is still daylight in summer due to longer daytime and wants to play more.