Longfellow
Henry Ford, the automobile magnate, once stated that the "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 Wadsworth Longfellow. "One of the real American Poets of yesterday" (Montiero, Preface), Longfellow elaborates on man's perpetual struggle with life and nature in his poetry. In "A Psalm of Life," "The Village Blacksmith," and "The Rainy Day," Longfellow explores many facets of man's unyielding will.Born into a prominent family on February 27, 1807, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow grew up in the bustling town of Portland, Maine. His parents Stephen and Zilpah Longfellow provided a strong, but refined, Puritan background, while encouraging Henry to excel in academics (Wagenknecht 2). Longfellow's education began early, when he was enrolled in an "old-fashioned 'dame' school" (Wagenknecht 4) at the age of three. His schooling continued in 1815 with his entrance into the Portland Academy. At the age of f
for his six-year long professorship. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ __________ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, His Poetry and Prose. New York: Ungar. 1986. Rabe, Roberto. "Henry Wadsworth Longfellow." "www.duc.auburn.edu/~vestmon/longfellow-bio.html" Has earned a night's repose (37-42) Toiling, --rejoicing, --sorrowing, Harvard University offered Longfellow the "Smith Professorship of French and Spanish" in 1834 and he, again, traveled to Europe (Wagenknecht 5). His wife of four years, Mary Storer Potter, accompanied him on the trip. While they were in the Netherlands, Mary "suffered a miscarriage" and died weeks later from the extreme trauma (Wagenknecht 5). Longfellow spent the winter grieving, but met his second wife, Fanny Appleton, in Switzerland the next spring. They were married in the summer of 1843, and Fanny bore nine children before her tragic death on July 9, 1861. He grieved tremendously for his wife of eighteen years, but took comfort in their children and his memories of their life together. Longfellow continued to write poetry and in 1868 he received honorary degrees at Oxford and Cambridge from Queen Victoria. His health began to fail in 1881, and he died of peritonitis on March 24, 1882. A bust of Longfellow was mounted in the Poet's Corner of Westminster Abbey in 1884 as a ! ourteen, Longfellow entered Bowdoin College where his academic brilliance earned him a position of fourth in a graduating class of thirty-eight (Williams, Preface). Stephen Longfellow encouraged his son to pursue a stable career in law, but Longfellow's love of words led him to accept the "newly established professorship of modern languages at Bowdoin College" (Wagenknecht 3). He traveled extensively in France, Spain, Italy, and Germany to refine his language skills in preparation!
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Approximate Word count = 1657
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)
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