Can anyone help me analyze this poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow? "A Psalm of Life"?
"Life is but an empty dream!"
For the soul is dead that slumbers,
And things are not what they seem.
Life is real! Life is earnest!
And the grave is not its goal;
"Dust thou art, to dust returnest,"
Was not spoken of the soul.
Not enjoyment, and not sorrow,
Is our destined end or way;
But to act, that each to-morrow
Find us further than to-day.
Art is long, and Time is fleeting,
And our hearts, though stout and brave,
Still, like muffled drums, are beating
Funeral marches to the grave.
In the world's broad field of battle,
In the bivouac of Life,
Be not like dumb, driven cattle!
Be a hero in the strife!
Trust no Future, howe'er pleasant!
Let the dead Past bury its dead!
Act -- act in the living Present!
Heart within, and God o'erhead!
Lives of great men all remind us
We can make our lives sublime,
And, departing, leave behind us
Footprints on the sands of time;
Footprints, that perhaps another,
Sailing o'er life's solemn main,
A forlorn and shipwrecked brother,
Seeing, shall take heart again.
Let us, then, be up and doing,
With a heart for any fate;
Still achieving, still pursuing,
Learn to labour and to wait.
1st Stanza: He doesn't want everybody to tell him that life has no meaning. I think he also means that a soul is dead if it just sits back and does nothing, too.
2nd Stanza: (def of earnest: firm belief in the validity of your opinions) Life is real and has meaning. Death is not the goal in life.
"Dust thou art, to dust returnest,"
Was not spoken of the soul.
"I think means that we came from dust, so we will return to dust" (So pretty much it says we're nothing, but he's saying that's not true at all and the soul is more than that.)
3rd Stanza: The goal of life is not to enjoy it or be sad. The goal of life is to ACT, and bring the world further than it was than when you came.
4th Stanza: You don't have much time on earth, but what you do here will last A LOT longer than you will.
5th Stanza: (def of bivouac: camp or temporary living area)
Life is a temporary place for our soul,
And while we have the time we have here, don't follow the crowd or go with the flow, but step forward, lead, and do something to help the world.
6th Stanza: Don't trust that there will always be a future, or that the future will be good. You always have to work for the future.
Leave the past in the past.
All you can do is act- act with your heart, and trust and remember God.
7th Stanza: (Def. of Sublime: inspiring awe) The things great men did (ex-prob. George Washington and all them) remind us that we too can do great things for the world, and we too can leave our mark on the world.
8th Stanza: Another person might see the mark we left on the world on their little journey of life. They could be a sad and desparate person, and have hope and courage again because they realize that you did it and maybe they can, too.
9th Stanza: We should not sit on our butts in despair, but be up and acting and doing stuff to change the world. No matter what you want in life, make sure you're still achieving goals, still pursuing them, and learn to work and be patient for its rewards.
So overall meaning: Act in life. Always be working towards goals, leave your mark on the world, make it a better place. Be an inspiration. Yeah, pretty much act.
I know I skipped some stuff, sorry man, that's all I got.
Pretty much the overall meaning is that life is beautiful and not to think all morbid about it.
But seriously holy sh** that's all I know. I suck. Good luck.
#If you have any other info about this subject , Please add it free.# |
