William Cullen Bryant (1794-1878)

Teaching Objectives: 1. Provide basic knowledge of William Cullen Bryant. 2. Enjoy some works written by William Cullen Bryant.

Teaching Procedures: 1. William Cullen Bryant's life. 2. William Cullen Bryant's main works. 3. Analysis on some of William Cullen Bryant's works.

William Cullen Bryant (1794-1878) 威廉·卡伦·布莱恩特

William Cullen Bryant November 3, 1794 - June 12, 1878 an American Romantic Poet, journalist, and long-time editor of the New York Evening Post. By age of nine he was already writing poetry and had earned a reputation as a prodigy. When he began his career as a lawyer, he often walked the seven miles to his place of work. On one of these walks, in December 1815, he noticed a single bird flying on the horizon; the sight moved him enough to write “To a Waterfowl” “路漫漫兮我将独行” First mature American Romantic – died at age 83 and is considered the “father of American poetry” “To a Waterfowl” was meant to be read as a spiritual counsel “Thanatopsis” – meaning “ways of seeing death” was written when Bryant was 18 years old while rambling through the woods. (To be read on Wednesday)

Main works Thanatopsis (1811)《死亡随想曲》 Inscription for the Entrance to a Wood《踏进森林之路》 The Fountain(1842)《泉水》 The White-Footed Deer(1844)《白蹄鹿》 The Flood of Years(1878)《似水流年》 To the Waterfowl(1815)《致水鸟》 Hymn of the City(1830) 《城市颂歌》 Translation:Iliad(1870) 《伊利亚特》(古希腊描写特洛伊战争的英雄史诗) and Odeyssey奥得赛 (1871)

one of America’s earliest naturalist poets “the American Wordsworth”

Eight Easy Steps to Understanding Any Poem Read the title. What do you know about the topic? Know the author (sometimes) Read all the way through without stopping. Record your first reaction. Two or three sentences giving your impressions. Vocabulary. In poetry, you must never skip a word. Focus on the context clues. Go stanza by stanza. Build a flow map. Recall the story Read again! Put the poem back together again as the author intended. Record wisdom. What is the meaning of the poem?

“To A Waterfowl” By William Cullen Bryant “路漫漫兮我将独行”

WHITHER, midst falling dew, While glow the heavens with the last steps of day, Far, through their rosy depths, dost thou pursue     Thy solitary way? ●The poet is speaking to the lonely waterfowl that he sees flying above him. ●“Where are you (waterfowl) going all alone? It is the end of the day.” ● It is unusual for birds to fly alone.

    Vainly the fowler's eye Might mark thy distant flight to do thee wrong, As, darkly seen against the crimson sky,     Thy figure floats along. ●You might be killed by a hunter (fowler) as you fly through a red colored sky (blood, death). ●Is the bird an easier target because it flies alone?

    Seek'st thou the plashy brink Of weedy lake, or marge of river wide, Or where the rocking billows rise and sink     On the chafed ocean-side? ●Are you looking for a safe place to land? The watery edge of a lake or river? The ocean?

    There is a Power whose care Teaches thy way along that pathless coast— The desert and illimitable air—     Lone wandering, but not lost. ● Power = God, nature, or instinct ● Whether you know it or not, there is a guiding force in your life that shows you where to go even though there does not appear to be a clear path. You may be alone, but you are not lost.

    All day thy wings have fanned, At that far height, the cold, thin atmosphere, Yet stoop not, weary, to the welcome land,     Though the dark night is near. ●You have flown all day to great heights and through challenging conditions. Don’t stop now; don’t give into the temptation just because there is land below or because it is getting dark. Keep going!

    And soon that toil shall end; Soon shalt thou find a summer home, and rest, And scream among thy fellows; reeds shall bend,     Soon, o'er thy sheltered nest. ● Soon = Hopeful tone ● You work will end “soon”. You will finally be home among your friends/family and will be able to rest.

Thou 'rt gone, the abyss of heaven Hath swallowed up thy form; yet, on my heart Deeply hath sunk the lesson thou hast given,  And shall not soon depart. You (the waterfowl) are no longer visible, but the lesson you taught me about the journey through life will stay with me.

He = God, nature, instinct     He who, from zone to zone, Guides through the boundless sky thy certain flight, In the long way that I must tread alone,     Will lead my steps aright. He = God, nature, instinct Even though we, like the waterfowl, must take a “pathless” road at times in our life, we need to trust that there is always a force that is guiding us in the right direction. We may walk the path alone, but we will never be without direction.

To a Waterfowl the poet in self-doubt and despair a lonely bird-- flying to--its destination-- by Power the poet-- walking to-- destination-- by Power too

Characteristics of William Cullen Bryant (1794-1878) 1.writing mainly on nature (soul, definition of nature<city and nature>, 2.style:Depression, Melancholy ，emotion(乐观且悲壮的浪漫主义） 3. thoughts on something 4.individualism 5. Mysticism : Nature is God 6.simple language, classic form

Thanatopsis Thanato—death Opsis—sight ways of seeing death

Thanatopsis: Reading Skill: Inverted Sentences William Cullen Bryant often makes use of inversion, a rearrangement of the usual word order in sentences. If you have trouble understanding sentences in the poem, try rearranging the words.

Thanatopsis: Poetic Form The poetic form that Bryant uses for “Thanatopsis” is blank verse. Blank verse is poetry written in unrhymed iambic pentameter抑扬格五音步(an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable)

Thanatopsis: Into the Poem William Cullen Bryant was in his late teens when he wrote his first draft of “Thanatopsis.” He was looking for answers to how to accept death. He finds his answers in nature. He observes that when we die, we become a part of nature, along with everyone else who has already died and everyone who will die.

“Thanatopsis” – meaning “” was written when Bryant was 18 years old while rambling through the woods.