Poetry Analysis
By: Tanille Shandro
TO CANADA
By: Larissa Covato
Oh, Grand and Regal Lady!
Let down your stream of golden, braided hair.
Extend your soft, white hands in greeting,
Salute the cool, inviting morning air.
A robe of forest green adorns you,
And pearly lakes are fitted in your crown
With threads of winding, silvery rivers,
That run along your snowy, winter gown.
The young, the homeless and the hopeful
Are heartened by your lush serenity,
And those who come to seek you fortunes
Shall find a smile that spreads from sea to sea.
Oh Kind and Noble Lady!
I bow before the shield of your embrace!
Let no man test you faith and gentle judgement
And may your reign be long and filled with grace.
The Poem “TO CANADA” written by Larissa Covato is a poem stating how
beautiful and wonderful a place like Canada is to live. It doesn’t say straight what the
Identity of Canada’s global responsibilities are but if you read beyond the message you
can see it. First it is comparing Canada to a magnificent appearance and a fit for a
monarch woman. The whole poem creates this image of a beautiful, elegant woman when
really they are talking about Canada’s resources and “personality” of our country. “Let
down your stream of golden, braided hair” is referring to Canada’s abundant source of
wheat and agriculture that helps add export and income to our economy. The next line
“Extend your soft, white hands in greeting” is referring to that we are an open,
welcoming country. “A robe of forest green adorns you” is saying how Canada is covered
in forests and it helps to make it a very natural and clean place to be. It also adds to the
beauty of our country. The phrase “And pearly lakes are fitted in your crown” and “With
threads of winding, silvery rivers” is saying how in northern Canada and all throughout
we have lots of open water that helps make Canada a beautiful place and adds to our
fishing industry and ways of transportation. “That run along your snowy, winter gown”
this is stating that our vast temperatures makes our country unique and beautiful. The
next part of the poem is all about immigration “The young, the homeless and the hopeful
are heartened by your lush serenity, and those who come to seek you fortunes shall find a
smile that spreads from sea to sea.” This is stating that Canada is a wonderful place to
live and everybody is trying to get here to become part of it. It states how they come to
seek fortune and will find it from sea to sea. This says how we are plentiful in jobs and
resources and people can find jobs all throughout our country. The last section “
Oh Kind and Noble Lady! I bow before the shield of your embrace! Let no man test you
faith and gentle judgement and may your reign be long and filled with grace.” This is
saying how we are a strong and powerful country. It also says that they hope there are no
wars here and nobody will “test” us meaning nobody will try and start fighting with us
because we are a peaceful land with a strong army. Also at the very end it states how
they hope that we live this way for a very long time; with abundant resources, open arms
to new comers and strong and safe from wars. I like this poem and how it represents
Canada’s global responsibilities. I appreciate that they use a woman as a symbol for
Canada. They make her kind, caring, beautiful, strong and powerful. This is what Canada
is to me.
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANDAllMA4fk