Historical Speech – Henry Longfellow
Art comes in many different shapes and forms. Some people may view it as a painting on
the wall, while others may see it as a song played through instruments. Just like some of the
other famed artists, such as William Shakespeare or John Keats, Henry Longfellow was another
creative mind that made art out of paper and a pen. We have all (hopefully) enjoyed the
experience of getting lost in a really good book or piece of poetry before. That feeling of wanting
to know what happens next or wanting to discover what something means is the meaningful
work of an artist. I myself have always been amazed at the creativity of writers such as Henry
Longfellow and have spent some time researching his personal work and how it has influenced
American culture. Today, I will be telling you about Henry Longfellow. You will hear about how
he earned his reputation and how one of his most famous pieces influenced American culture.
To begin, allow me to introduce him to you. Remember when you were back in your high
school classrooms, listening, or probably just hearing your English teacher talking about poems,
plays, the usual stuff, and famous characters like…William Shakespeare? and how much he
influenced the culture of 16th-century England because of his eloquence and understanding of
creative writing? Well, the same kind of recognition could be said about Henry Wadsworth
Longfellow. Maybe not about 16th-century England, but more so about 19th-century America.
Henry was born during February of 1804 in Portland and only had a few years to make
the most out of it before he started schooling. He attended private schools with his older brother,
looking to someday attend school at Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine. While not in school,
he enjoyed going to his grandfather’s house for not only some outside recreation, but also for his
first experiences with poetry and creative writing. From that point on, his poetic potential began
, to bloom. Once he had passed his entrance exam to Bowdoin College at age 13, he began
creating his iconic pieces, which would later on grant him the opportunity of a lifetime.
While Henry was attending college, his father was under the wrong impression that
Henry was going to pursue a legal career. Henry didn’t want that. He wanted to pursue what he
found interesting, which was the art of poetry. After some bargaining back and forth, Henry was
able to study literature and modern languages for a year as a postgraduate while supporting
himself through writing. During that year, Mrs. Bowdoin (the wife of who the college was
named after) offered Henry a $1000 endowment for a professorship in modern languages, which
at the time in America, there was only three others active in education. Henry was able to accept
the endowment under one condition. He had to travel to Europe to become successful in
romantic languages. Henry accepted the terms and left for Europe in 1826. As the Poetry
Foundation website described in an online article of theirs called “Henry Wadsworth
Longfellow”, he spent three years “rambling through cities and country sides, absorbing
impressions of European cultures and places, living with families in Paris, Madrid, and Rome,
and developing linguistic fluency.” He returned to Maine in 1829 to fulfill his professorship at
Bowdoin. He did so and remained as one of America’s most studious modern language
professors for most of his life, taking enlightening trips back to Europe and publishing multiple
works including books, poems, and even translated textbooks. Also described by author Robert
Gale, who wrote A Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Companion in 2003, Henry Longfellow was
“one of the most popular poets in American literary history”.
One of Henry Longfellow’s most famous works was a poem titled “Paul Revere’s Ride”.
As the name suggests, it tells the tale of the popular historical figure, Paul Revere, and how he
played a major role in the American Revolution. As editor J.D. McClatchy wrote in Longfellow:
Art comes in many different shapes and forms. Some people may view it as a painting on
the wall, while others may see it as a song played through instruments. Just like some of the
other famed artists, such as William Shakespeare or John Keats, Henry Longfellow was another
creative mind that made art out of paper and a pen. We have all (hopefully) enjoyed the
experience of getting lost in a really good book or piece of poetry before. That feeling of wanting
to know what happens next or wanting to discover what something means is the meaningful
work of an artist. I myself have always been amazed at the creativity of writers such as Henry
Longfellow and have spent some time researching his personal work and how it has influenced
American culture. Today, I will be telling you about Henry Longfellow. You will hear about how
he earned his reputation and how one of his most famous pieces influenced American culture.
To begin, allow me to introduce him to you. Remember when you were back in your high
school classrooms, listening, or probably just hearing your English teacher talking about poems,
plays, the usual stuff, and famous characters like…William Shakespeare? and how much he
influenced the culture of 16th-century England because of his eloquence and understanding of
creative writing? Well, the same kind of recognition could be said about Henry Wadsworth
Longfellow. Maybe not about 16th-century England, but more so about 19th-century America.
Henry was born during February of 1804 in Portland and only had a few years to make
the most out of it before he started schooling. He attended private schools with his older brother,
looking to someday attend school at Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine. While not in school,
he enjoyed going to his grandfather’s house for not only some outside recreation, but also for his
first experiences with poetry and creative writing. From that point on, his poetic potential began
, to bloom. Once he had passed his entrance exam to Bowdoin College at age 13, he began
creating his iconic pieces, which would later on grant him the opportunity of a lifetime.
While Henry was attending college, his father was under the wrong impression that
Henry was going to pursue a legal career. Henry didn’t want that. He wanted to pursue what he
found interesting, which was the art of poetry. After some bargaining back and forth, Henry was
able to study literature and modern languages for a year as a postgraduate while supporting
himself through writing. During that year, Mrs. Bowdoin (the wife of who the college was
named after) offered Henry a $1000 endowment for a professorship in modern languages, which
at the time in America, there was only three others active in education. Henry was able to accept
the endowment under one condition. He had to travel to Europe to become successful in
romantic languages. Henry accepted the terms and left for Europe in 1826. As the Poetry
Foundation website described in an online article of theirs called “Henry Wadsworth
Longfellow”, he spent three years “rambling through cities and country sides, absorbing
impressions of European cultures and places, living with families in Paris, Madrid, and Rome,
and developing linguistic fluency.” He returned to Maine in 1829 to fulfill his professorship at
Bowdoin. He did so and remained as one of America’s most studious modern language
professors for most of his life, taking enlightening trips back to Europe and publishing multiple
works including books, poems, and even translated textbooks. Also described by author Robert
Gale, who wrote A Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Companion in 2003, Henry Longfellow was
“one of the most popular poets in American literary history”.
One of Henry Longfellow’s most famous works was a poem titled “Paul Revere’s Ride”.
As the name suggests, it tells the tale of the popular historical figure, Paul Revere, and how he
played a major role in the American Revolution. As editor J.D. McClatchy wrote in Longfellow:
