The poem is a song of praise describing how welcoming it is to see rain after a hot day.
It was written by the great American wordsmith Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and demonstrates his ability to write with melodious words and rhythm.
The poet lived from 1807 to 1882 and started publishing his words at the age of 13. After school and college he became a professor of modern languages at the age of 22. By 1836 he had become a professor at Harvard University. But in 1854 he gave up his job and devoted all of his time to writing poetry.
He created a vast body of work over his lifetime and used all kinds of recognized writing skills such as anapestic and trochaic forms, blank verse, heroic couplets, ballads and sonnets. Scholars say he would carefully consider the subject of his poem before settling on which form to use on it.
The thing that sets him apart from other writers is his ability to write verses that sound musical. How Beautiful Is The Rain is a great example of this.
This is part of one of the verses, note how melodious it is:
From under the sheltering trees, The farmer sees His pastures, and his fields of grain, As they bend their tops To the numberless beating drops Of the incessant rain.
The poet himself referred to the importance of music in poetry saying: "What a writer asks of his reader is not so much to like as to listen".
Much of Longfellow's poetry imparts cultural and moral values. He was keen to promote happiness as coming from more than material goods. How Beautiful Is The Rain fits this mould. What could bring more joy than the simple pleasure of rain on a hot day?
It was written by the great American wordsmith Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and demonstrates his ability to write with melodious words and rhythm.
The poet lived from 1807 to 1882 and started publishing his words at the age of 13. After school and college he became a professor of modern languages at the age of 22. By 1836 he had become a professor at Harvard University. But in 1854 he gave up his job and devoted all of his time to writing poetry.
He created a vast body of work over his lifetime and used all kinds of recognized writing skills such as anapestic and trochaic forms, blank verse, heroic couplets, ballads and sonnets. Scholars say he would carefully consider the subject of his poem before settling on which form to use on it.
The thing that sets him apart from other writers is his ability to write verses that sound musical. How Beautiful Is The Rain is a great example of this.
This is part of one of the verses, note how melodious it is:
From under the sheltering trees, The farmer sees His pastures, and his fields of grain, As they bend their tops To the numberless beating drops Of the incessant rain.
The poet himself referred to the importance of music in poetry saying: "What a writer asks of his reader is not so much to like as to listen".
Much of Longfellow's poetry imparts cultural and moral values. He was keen to promote happiness as coming from more than material goods. How Beautiful Is The Rain fits this mould. What could bring more joy than the simple pleasure of rain on a hot day?
