Comparing Bryant And Wadsworth Longfellow

Poetry is a way to express someone's feelings and ideas by the use of distinctive style and rhythm. Poets use different literary devices to convey meaning, bring richness and clarity to their text. William Cullen Bryant and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow effectively used imagery in their writing. Both authors have similarities and differences in their work. For Bryant is was Thanatopsis, and for Longfellow it was The tide rises, the tide falls.
Imagery creates visual representations of ideas in our minds. Henry Longfellow creates vivid imagery with the rising and falling of the tides. “And the tide rises, the tide falls”, he uses this line at the end of every stanza. It emphasizes on the continuous of life even if one is not alive to see it. The …show more content…
“The venerable woods--rivers that move In majesty, and the complaining brooks that make the meadows green; and, poured round all, old ocean's gray and melancholy waste,-- are but the solemn decorations all Of the great tomb of man.” Images of graves, tombs, and coffins are all over this poem and because of this readers have dark images. The poem talks about a couch “Like one who wraps the drapery of his couch about him, and lies down to pleasant dreams.” The poem ends with an image of not being afraid of death. People should think of death as something wrapping yourself in a blanket, being comfortable and having a dream-filled sleep. Out of the five senses, both authors used sight the most. They heavily talked and created images about nature. Both poems portrayed nature as being dominate in life. Both talked about man’s temporary relationship with nature.
William Cullen Bryant and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow had imagery throughout their poem. Bryant’s poem, Thanatopsis, talks about how nature makes man feel better. As you read the poem you are able to see man’s relationship with nature. Longfellow beautifully describes the cycle of life by comparing it to the