HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW

1. HENRY WADSWORTH
LONGFELLOW

2. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
was born in Portland, Maine on
February 27, 1807.
He was an American Poet and
Educator.
Son of Stephen and Zilpah
Longfellow.
At the age of six, he showed a
great propensity toward writing.
At age 19, he graduated from
Bowdoin College.

3. He traveled Europe for three
years, preparing himself for his
new career as a college professor
in modern languages.
In 1831, he married to Mary
Storer Potter.
In 1835, during a second trip to
Europe. Mary Storer Potter died
during a miscarriage.
He publish his first book a
description of his travels called
Outre Mer (Overseas).

4. In 1836, he began teaching at
Harvard University.
Three years later, (1839) at the
age of 32, he published his first
collection of poems Voices of
the Night, followed in 1841 by
Ballads and other Poems.
In 1843, he married to Frances
Elizabeth (Fanny) Appleton
and had six children together.
In 1847, he published
Evangeline.

5. In 1854, he decided to quit
teaching to devote all his time in
poetry.
In 1855, he published the poem
The Song of Hiawatha.
In 1860, he wrote Paul Revere’s
Ride.
In 1861, his wife Frances
Elizabeth Longfellow died
tragically.

6. Longfellow’s famous beard
conceals his scars, which he
obtained when he attempted to
save his wife from the fire.
In 1867, He translated Dante
Alighieri’s Divine Comedy.
In 1879, he wrote The Cross of
Snow.
He died on March 24, 1882 from
peritonitis.

7. Longfellow wrote many lyric
poems known for their
and often presenting stories of
mythology and legend.
He has been criticized by some,
for imitating European styles and
writing specifically for the
masses.
Much of Longfellow’s work is
categorized as lyric poetry, but
he experimented with many
forms, like free verse.

8. HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW
ACHIEVEMENTS
• More than a million copies of his poetry had been sold.
• Granted private audiences with Queen Victoria.
• Granted honorary degrees from Oxford and Cambridge.
• In America, a national holiday was declared to celebrate his seventy
fifth birthday .
• From the late nineteenth century to the mid twentieth, nearly
century school age child in the United States and most of Britain
were required to read some of his poetry.
• Became the first American to be honored a memorial in the Poets’
Corner of Westminster Abbey a distinction reserved for the greatest
English Poets.

9. Poets’ Corner of
Westminster Abbey in
London, England.
First stamp to honor
Longfellow, issued on
February 16, 1940
For bicentennial issuing
a commemorative stamp
on March 15, 2007

10. HENRY WADSWORTH LONGFELLOW
NOTABLE WORKS
• Ballads and Other Poems
• Evangeline (A Tale of Acadie)
• Paul Revere’s Ride
• The Song of Hiawatha
• The Voices of the Night
• The Psalm of Life

11. THANK YOU! 