The supporting effect of formal qualities on poem meaning

¶ … Qualities of a Poem Have on its Overall Meaning

An analysis of formal qualities in "Snow-Flakes" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

This striking and insightful poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow explores death, bereavement and grief in human life. The poet uses images and symbols from nature to express his feelings about death and mourning for someone who has died. The poem is therefore essentially a description of how nature reveals the very essence of grief and despair through the evocation of snow and the onset of winter. The poet draws a very insightful and thought provoking comparison between nature and human grief and shows how nature reveals "...the secret of despair." He succeeds in this poem through the subtle and concise use of language and imagery but also through the use of formal elements such as structure, as well as word usage and placement.

The main device used in the poem is the personification of nature. The poet achieves this through the manipulation of imagery as a central visual device that suggests the oncoming winter and snow; which is related to the feelings of grief and despair. The poem also shows how various formal techniques and devices are used to enhance and convey the central message of the poem.

A central formal quality in this poem is the separation of the various components of the poem into stanzas. The division of the poem into different sections or stanzas serves to convey the progression of feeling and emotion in the poem.

Therefore the structure of the poem and the fact that it is divided into three stanzas is an extremely important aspect of this short poem. In brief the three stanzas each contain a different mood or meaning of the poet's exploration of grief and despair.

The first stanza is very important as it grasps our attention and introduces the central theme of the way that death and despair enters our lives without warning and as naturally as the coming of winter. In this poem it seems that the entrance of death into the life of the protagonist is sudden and unexpected. The poet uses formal structural elements to convey this sense of unexpectedness, as well as to show the inevitability of death.

One of the structural devices he employs is known as the periodic sentence. This refers to a type of sentence which is only concluded at the very end. In other words, the entire first stanza is one long sentence which leads us, by using parallel phrases and dependent clauses, to the conclusion at the end.

Silent, and soft, and slow

Descends the snow,

This structure in the first stanza has the effect of creating a sense of anticipation which draws the reader into the poem and increases interest though the expectation of what is to come. Note that there is a repetition of words in the first four lines of the stanza. The word "Out" is repeated as well as the word "Over." It is also important that these are the first words of each line, as this places emphasis on their meaning and relates to the theme of death and the departure from life. For example, the word "Over" obviously suggests that life is over, or has come to an end.

The repetition of words also helps to convey a sense of something that is about to happen and reinforces the main theme of despair and grief.

This effect is also achieved though the auditory quality of the words and that way that this relates to thematic meaning. The words "Out "and Over" both convey a sense of loss and leaving, which enhances the meaning and intention of the poem as an exploration of grief.

The final lines of the first stanza are very short and concise. They are almost brutal in their finality and in the way that they suggest the inescapability of death through their analogy to winter. The direct simplicity of these lines and the way that they are positioned after the other longer lines, adds weight to the meaning of the poem and we feel the sense of loss and grief. Note as well the use of alliteration in the second last line of the stanza: "Silent, and soft, and slow."

This also adds to the sense of inevitability and the finality of death.

The use of alliteration, combined with the shorter and longer lines in the stanza is an example of the way that the pace of the poem is altered and manipulated to suggest and support the central meaning of the poem.

The second stanza seems to suggest that the protagonist is looking for answers or is in denial at the death of someone that he has loved. There is also the suggestion of a feeling of guilt in the word" Confession." These feelings are aided by the repetition of first words in the lines. The repetition of the word, "Even" has an auditory quality, which suggest a sense of possibly. But the possibly that death can be stopped or in way prevented is denied in the conclusive and final tone of the last two lines of the stanza.

The troubled sky reveals

The grief it feels.

As in the first stanza, the last lines of stanza two are short and curt, which conveys the impression again that death is final. The fact that the last two lines rhyme helps to enforce this sense of finality.

Many of the structural and formal devices used in the fist two stanzas are repeated in the last stanza. In this stanza however the intention and message are slightly different. Here the protagonist in the poem faces the reality and inevitability of death. In this stanza the poet accepts the death that has occurred. The secret reality of death is revealed as part of the natural cycle of life. This reality is expressed through nature.