The Rainbow
My heart leaps up when I behold A rainbow in the sky; So was it when my life began; So is it now I am a man; So be it when I shall grow old, Or let me die! The Child is father of the Man; And I could wish my days to be Bound each to each by natural piety.
time
identity
lyric poem
joyful
The Rainbow - meaning Summary
Childhood Shapes Adulthood
Longfellow responds to a simple sight—a rainbow—as proof of a lifelong emotional continuity. The poem claims that the joy felt in childhood persists into adulthood and should continue into old age, making early experience formative. Its closing line, The Child is father of the Man
, states the central idea: the self is built from youthful perception, and days should be connected by a steady, innate reverence for life.
Feel free to be first to leave comment.