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    A Study Guide for Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's "The Arsenal at Springfield"
    A Study Guide for Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's "The Arsenal at Springfield"
    A Study Guide for Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's "The Arsenal at Springfield"
    Ebook35 pages26 minutes

    A Study Guide for Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's "The Arsenal at Springfield"

    By Gale and Cengage

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    About this ebook

    A Study Guide for Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's "The Arsenal at Springfield," excerpted from Gale's acclaimed Poetry for Students. This concise study guide includes plot summary; character analysis; author biography; study questions; historical context; suggestions for further reading; and much more. For any literature project, trust Poetry for Students for all of your research needs.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherCengage Learning - Gale
    Release dateAug 26, 2016
    ISBN9781535835091
    A Study Guide for Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's "The Arsenal at Springfield"

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      A Study Guide for Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's "The Arsenal at Springfield" - Gale

      1

      The Arsenal at Springfield

      Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

      1845

      Introduction

      Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's The Arsenal at Springfield, first published in 1845 in America, is considered by many critics to be Longfellow's most effective antiwar poem. The idea for the poem came on Longfellow's wedding trip to the famous arsenal in Springfield, Massachusetts, which supplied many of the guns used during the American Revolution. At the suggestion of his wife, Fanny, and inspired by the writings of his friend, the peace crusader Charles Sumner—who was also present at the tour of the arsenal—Longfellow wrote a poem that offered a desperate plea for peace. The many rows of guns in the arsenal, which in Longfellow's estimation resembled a pipe organ, provided a vivid image to launch his poem. In fact, many critics have commented on the effectiveness of the images in the poem, which offer a gritty tour through the ravaging effects of human war, as well as a preview of what a peaceful society could be like.

      The poem was widely known in its time. Sumner was one of many engaged in a vigorous antiwar—and in some cases antislavery—debate, so Longfellow's poem was timely. The poet's reputation declined after his death, and the debate over the worth of his works still rages. Still, The Arsenal at Springfield forever commemorates the actual arsenal, which today is housed in the museum of the historic Springfield Armory. The arsenal is known as the Organ of Muskets—as a result of Longfellow's depiction in the poem. A current copy of the poem can be found in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow: Selected Poems, published by Penguin Classics in 1988.

      Author Biography

      Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was born on February 27, 1807, in Portland, Maine. His father, Stephen Longfellow, was a member of the Eighteenth Congress of the United States. In 1822, Longfellow enrolled in Bowdoin College, a new academic institution where his father was a trustee. However, Longfellow went against his father's wish, which was for his son to study law, and chose to pursue a literary career. A prolific writer, Longfellow published poems in several different publications while in school. In 1825, the poet was offered the position of chair of the new modern languages department at Bowdoin.

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