Wilfredo Berrios
Mrs. Stalk
December 18 2009
A3
Harriet Beecher Stowe
“Arrival in the Land of Freedom” was written by Harriet Beecher Stow in 1853. Her
poem is mainly about slavery and freedom. The first stanza in her poem is telling on how
grateful the slaves were on the people who took them to freedom which would be on in Canada.
By the first stanza I can see that they traveled by boat across one of the four great lakes that lead
into Canada. “Look at the travelers kneeling, in thankful gladness, here, as the boat that brought
them o’er the lake, goes steaming from the pier.” In the second stanza of her poem it shows that
when they were an the plantation they came from Harriet Beecher Stow and her mother were
disguised to not show fear, hurt, or pain like her father when they finally reach the shores of
freedom her father is over whelmed that he falls to his knees and expresses himself as his
daughter and wife follow him. “’Tis Harry, like a girl disguised, His mother, like a boy, but the
father kneels beside them, and their hearts are full of joy.” This stanza “No man can buy or sell
them, No trader chase them more, the land of freedom has been gained, the good Canadian
shore.” Is saying how they are free now that they are in Canada. Sense they are now in Canada
they know that they are free and that people who trade black slaves can’t chase them down
anymore and put them up for auction so they could be sold and bought by other rich white men.
Finally the last stanza of the poem, “And they are strangers on the soil, as poor as poor can be,
But the English flag above them floats, they know that they are free.” Is saying that even though
they are strangers on Canadian land and know nothing about the land and also with no money,
Wilfredo Berrios
Mrs. Stalk
December 18 2009
A3
everything will turn out to be fine because they see the American flag waving over them and
they know that they are free and nothing or no one could take their freedom away anymore.
“The Other World” is another poem written by Harriet Beecher Stowe in 1867. She starts
her poem, “It lies around like a cloud, a world we do not see; yet the same closing of an eye may
bring us there to be.” This first stanza is saying something about a world you are not used to or a
world that you have heard before but you haven’t really seen it and somewhere in the world it
really exist and when you close your eyes you could see the hidden world as a picture. The world
you see may be saddening or joyful depending where you are situated in the world. But in this
case her poem is thinking of a joyful place. “Its gentle breezes fan our cheek; amid our worldly
cares, its gentle voices whisper love, and mingle with our prayers.” This second stanza, I think is
talking about that great feeling breeze fanning their cheeks once they were on free land and about
the people with different voices they haven’t heard and that don’t discriminate them for who they
are. As well as in the next stanza, it still talks about the different people in the free land that don’t
discriminate against the free slave and that while the slaves are there the Canadians help them
with what they need, “Sweet hearts around us throb and beat, sweet helping hands are stirred,
and palpitates the vile between with breathing almost heard.” “The silence, awful, sweet, and
calm, they have no power to break; for mortal words are not for them to utter or partake.” “So
thin, so soft, so sweet, they glide, so near to press they seem, they lull us gently to our rest, they
melt into our dream.” “And in the hush of rest they bring ‘T is easy now to see how lovely and
how sweet a pass the hour of death may be;--” In these three stanzas Stowe is referring to how
Wilfredo Berrios
Mrs. Stalk
December 18 2009
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the slave owners brought the slaves to death and how the slave owners couldn’t do that anymore
because they were finally free and they don’t have to worry about death. The letter “T” in her
poem represents a cross, in which in the slaves case is a symbol of death. In these next two
stanzas she talks about death again and goes back to happiness and freedom again. “To close the
eye, and the ear, wrapped in a trance of bliss, and, gently drawn in loving arms, to swoon to that
-- from this, -- Scarce knowing if we wake or sleep, scarce asking where we are, to feel all evil
sink away, all sorrow and all care.” In her last two stanzas of her poem Stowe is coming back to
happiness and freedom. She’s talking about the good people that have helped and the people that
let them be free are very sweet and that every time they pray they would mention the nice
persons name and give them thanks for what they have done, and also, she says “let death
between us be as naught, a dried and vanished stream;” which means that she doesn’t want death
to occur between her people again and wants it to remain as a “vanished and dried stream.”
“Sweet souls around us! Watch us still; press nearer to our side; into our thoughts, into our
prayers, with gentle helpings glide.” “Let death between us be as naught, a dried and vanished
stream; your joy be the reality, our suffering like the dream.”
In conclusion both of Stowes poems are mainly about life and death, happiness and
sadness, slaves and slave owners, and also freedom. Most of her poems you will find will be
dealing with slavery. Stowe also likes to use imagery. She also uses two styles of poetry which
are lyric and rhyme. She uses these types because lyric is where she expresses her thoughts and
feelings and because she has the same or similar sounds of two or more words at the end of her lines.
Wilfredo Berrios
Mrs. Stalk
December 18 2009
A3