Light of Stars, the
Light of Stars, the - meaning Summary
Strength Found in Suffering
Longfellow’s poem watches nightfall and names the red planet Mars as a cold but steady light. The speaker reads Mars not as romantic love but as a symbol of strength, resolve, and heroic calm. Observing the planet bolsters the speaker’s courage and becomes an address to the reader: accept loss and hardship with composure. The poem ends by asserting the moral grandeur of enduring suffering and remaining resolute.
Read Complete AnalysesThe night is come, but not too soon; And sinking silently, All silently, the little moon Drops down behind the sky. There is no light in earth or heaven But the cold light of stars; And the first watch of night is given To the red planet Mars. Is it the tender star of love? The star of love and dreams? O no! from that blue tent above, A hero's armor gleams. And earnest thoughts within me rise, When I behold afar, Suspended in the evening skies, The shield of that red star. O star of strength! I see thee stand And smile upon my pain; Thou beckonest with thy mailed hand, And I am strong again. Within my breast there is no light But the cold light of stars; I give the first watch of the night To the red planet Mars. The star of the unconquered will, He rises in my breast, Serene, and resolute, and still, And calm, and self-possessed. And thou, too, whosoe'er thou art, That readest this brief psalm, As one by one thy hopes depart, Be resolute and calm. O fear not in a world like this, And thou shalt know erelong, Know how sublime a thing it is To suffer and be strong.
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