Analysis and Interpretation

“Paul Revere’s Ride”by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

PublicationPoem was originally published in January of 1861 on the

eve of the Civil WarLongfellow was an abolitionist who sympathized with the

North’s cause; he wanted to note that history favors the courageous

Poem was later published in Longfellow’s Tales of the Wayside Inn; it was first in a collection of 22 narratives similar to Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales

Warns at the end of the poem of a coming "hour of darkness and peril and need", implying the breakup of the Union

By emphasizing the nation’s common history, he was attempting to dissolve social tensions.

“Hardly a Man is Now Alive”Longfellow’s phrase

"Hardly a man is now alive" was true: the last man alive from the Revolution had just recently died

Longfellow was inspired to write the poem after climbing the tower of the Old North Church on April 5, 1860

The Old North ChurchThe enduring fame of the Old North began

on the evening of April 18, 1775, when the church sexton, Robert Newman, climbed the steeple and held high two lanterns as a signal from Paul Revere that the British were marching to Lexington and Concord by sea and not by land.

This fateful event ignited the American Revolution.

The Old North Church is officially known as Christ Church in the City of Boston.

The Old North ChurchIt was built in 1723, and is the oldest

standing church building in Boston. In 1775, on the eve of Revolution, the

majority of the congregation were loyal to the British King and many held official positions in the royal government, including the Royal Governor of Massachusetts, making Robert Newman's loyalty to the Patriot cause even more extraordinary.

The King gave the Old North its silver that was used at services and a bible.

Background Longfellow wrote the poem 80 years after the

eventFor many months before Paul Revere made his

ride, tension between the Colonists and British Troops had been on the rise, both in the city and in surrounding towns.

The Royal Government (the British government in Massachusetts) wanted to ensure that troops would be able to secure the colony in case of rebellion.

Orders went out to confiscate weapons that the Colonists had been storing throughout the countryside.

Background Several parties of British troops had been

sent up the coast to confiscate ammunition in Salem and parts of what is now New Hampshire.

In both of those cases, Paul Revere and other riders who were members of the Sons of Liberty, alerted the townspeople of the movement of British troops well before those troops could reach their destinations.

The munitions were successfully hidden and the British troops were humiliated

Background When General Gage, the Commander of British

forces in North America and a parishioner at Old North , decided to seize the weapons and ammunition at Lexington and Concord, he didn't want to risk another humiliating failure, so he devised a secret plan.

On the evening of April 18th, 1775, he would order his British soldiers cross the Charles River and march the remaining 15 miles to Lexington under the cover of darkness, arrive at sunrise to collect the armaments and return to Boston before the townspeople could organize their resistance.

Background However, someone found out about this secret

plan—some believe it was General Gage's maid, some believe it was his own American-born wife, Margaret Kimball Gage, who informed the leaders of the Sons of Liberty that the troops were on the move by way of the shorter water route across the inner harbor.

Paul Revere and the Sons of Liberty had prepared for this troop movement and set about to alert their countrymen that the British Regulars (the British soldiers, sometimes referred to as Redcoats) were heading their way.

Background Sending just one rider into the countryside was far

too dangerous this time. Revere asked Robert Newman, the church sexton or caretaker, if he would send a back-up signal to warn the patriots in Charlestown, just in case Revere himself was captured on his ride before he could spread the alarm that the British were on the move.

Paul Revere, who was not a member of Old North, knew it well because he had been a bell-ringer here as a 15 year old boy. He knew that lanterns shining from the steeple of the tallest building in Boston at the time would clearly be seen on the other side of the harbor.

Background Newman agreed to help, so about 10:00

pm that evening, he entered through the front doors of the church.

He then went up the stairs to the balcony and slipped through the doorway that is now behind the organ.

From there he climbed the 14-story steeple in complete darkness.

When he reached the very top, he lit and briefly held up two lanterns in the steeple window.

Background Although Newman hung the lanterns for

probably less than a minute, it was long enough to be seen not only by the patriots, but also by the British troops.

As Newman was coming down the stairs, British soldiers were at the front doors, trying to break in to investigate.

To escape arrest, Newman came down the center aisle, and escaped through the window to the right of the altar.

Symbolism: The BelfryThe Old North Church stands as a symbol of

our nation’s courage, strength in times of turmoil, but more importantly, the power of collective action against a common enemy.

Longfellow uses the church to symbolically represent hope and freedom, being that it stood the test of time against the British, the evildoers. However, the lantern signal (which he did not receive) was meant for Revere, not put there by him. Longfellow does this to symbolically gesture to the nation that patriots like Revere act as a beacon of hope and courage, and therefore, light a fire under the rest of us to become in turn, inspired.

SymbolismThe poem fluctuates between past and present tense (sometimes in the same sentence).

This is done symbolically to place the events of the Revolution into a modern context and remind the country of its moral and cultural values.

InaccuraciesThe poem depicts Revere rowing himself across the Charles River when, in reality, he was rowed over by others.

He never reached Concord. Another inaccuracy is a general lengthening of the time frame of the night's events.

InaccuraciesRevere and William Dawes rode from Boston to

Lexington to warn John Hancock and Samuel Adams that British soldiers were marching from Boston to Lexington to arrest Hancock and Adams and seize the weapons stores in Concord.

Revere and Dawes then rode toward Concord, where the militia's arsenal was hidden.

They were joined by Samuel Prescott, a doctor who happened to be in Lexington. Revere, Dawes, and Prescott were stopped by British troops in Lincoln on the road to nearby Concord.

Prescott and Dawes escaped, but Revere was detained and questioned and then escorted at gunpoint by three British officers back to Lexington.

Of the three riders, only Prescott arrived at Concord in time to warn the militia there.

Meter: The Galloping Horse Longfellow mostly uses two kinds of meter: (1) the iamb (an

unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable – da DUM) and (2) the anapest, two unstressed syllables followed by a stressed syllable (da da DUM).

Line 2, for example, is made up of an anapest followed by three iambs. The stressed syllables are in bold and divide the meter up with slashes:

Of the mid/night ride/ of Paul/ Revere

Three syllables in the first group (or "foot") – that's the anapest – then three groups of two (the iambs).

Also, take a look at line 3:

On the eight/eenth of A/pril, in Sev/enty-five/

Literary ElementsTogether, lets define:AssonanceConsonanceAlliterationPersonificationImageryToneMood

AssonanceThe repetition of vowel sounds within words.

Example:Line 100: At the bloody work they would look upon.

ConsonanceThe repetition of consonant sounds within and at the ends of words.

Example: Line 79: And the spark struck out by that steed, in his flight,

AlliterationThe repetition of consonant sounds at the beginning of words.

Example:Line 25: Wanders and watches with eager ears.

PersonificationA figure of speech in which an object, animal, or idea is given human characteristics.

Example:Line 37: By the trembling ladder, steep and tall

Imagery Descriptive words and phrases that a writer uses to re-create sensory experiences; they appeal to the five senses: taste, touch, sight, sound, and smell.

Example:Line 44: Wrapped in silence so deep and still

ToneA writer’s attitude towards his or her subject. A writer can communicate tone through diction, choice of details, and direct statements on his or her position.

Example:Line 4 and 5: Hardly a man is now alive/Who remembers that famous day and year.

MoodThe feeling or atmosphere that a writer creates for the reader. Anything within a poem can create the mood of the piece.

Remember Longfellow’s use of iambs and anapests to create that galloping feeling. Through this, Longfellow creates an urgent mood within the poem.

Journal #8 (200 word minimum)Do you think that Longfellow was

justified in creating Paul Revere and his famous ride in the manner he did? Why or why not? Be sure to think about the repercussions of his “mistakes” in both a positive and negative fashion. What would change if Longfellow adhered to historical accuracy when writing the poem? Would it have been as effective? Why or why not?