Okay, I have been instructed to do a Close Reading assignment over a poem called The Death of Lincoln by William Cullen Bryant. I have to include quotes, what i think the author is trying to say, and i have to identify a few different literary elements.
Poem; Oh, slow to smit and swift to spare,
Gentle and merciful and just!
Who, in the fear of God, didst bear
The sword of power, a nation's trust!
In sorrow by thy bier we stand,
Amid the awe that hushes all,
And speak the anguish of a land
That shook with horror at thy fall.
Thy task is done; the bond of free;
We bear thee to an honored grave,
Whose proudest monument shall be
The broken fetters of the slave.
Pure was thy life; its bloody close
Hath placed thee with the sons of light,
Among the noble host of those
Who perished in the cause of Right.
Can anyone help me understand the poem? Im NOT asking you to do it for me, i just want help breaking it down so i can write my paper. Also, any parts that stick out that i could mention in my paper? thanks!
Poem; Oh, slow to smit and swift to spare,
Gentle and merciful and just!
Who, in the fear of God, didst bear
The sword of power, a nation's trust!
In sorrow by thy bier we stand,
Amid the awe that hushes all,
And speak the anguish of a land
That shook with horror at thy fall.
Thy task is done; the bond of free;
We bear thee to an honored grave,
Whose proudest monument shall be
The broken fetters of the slave.
Pure was thy life; its bloody close
Hath placed thee with the sons of light,
Among the noble host of those
Who perished in the cause of Right.
Can anyone help me understand the poem? Im NOT asking you to do it for me, i just want help breaking it down so i can write my paper. Also, any parts that stick out that i could mention in my paper? thanks!