The Blizzard
on 26 April 1912
The Blizzard - meaning Summary
Winter as Inner Turmoil
A speaker pleads with a blizzard as if it were a conscious presence, asking it to leave because its howling amplifies his sadness and fear. He moves from urgent petition to confession, invoking God and seeking forgiveness for a "lost spirit." Anticipating imminent death, he tells the storm to mourn him later but not to disturb his final prayers. The poem links external weather with inner guilt, fear, and longing for spiritual solace.
Read Complete Analyses"What do you need?" I pled With the blizzard, "Please depart. You summon sadness and dread And worries that sicken my heart; Why do you howl at my window? Let me be now, I'm praying; Move away, or stay and blow, But don't listen - I'm crying. In hot prayers at this hour I confess my sins to God, My soul joins the Power; Lost spirit, forgive me God. I'll be in a grave soon; blow hard, Moan over me then, blizzard, But now, please go away, Or, for my sinful soul, please pray."
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