These and a number of other poems, written before he had finished
his thirtieth year, would have entitled him to approximately the same rank
that he now holds in the history of American poetry. It is true that if he
had then passed away, we should have missed his exquisite call to _The
Evening Wind_ (1829), and some of his other fine productions, such as _To
the Fringed Gentian_ (1829), _The Prairies_ (1832), _The Battle-Field_
(1837), with its lines which are a keynote to Bryant's thought and
action:--
"Truth, crushed to earth, shall rise again,
Th' eternal years of God are hers."
We are thankful for the ideals voiced in _The Poet_ (1863), and we listen
respectfully to _The Flood of Years_ (1876), as the final utterance of a
poet who has had the experience of fourscore years.
GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS.--Bryant is the first great American poet. His
poetry is chiefly reflective and descriptive, and it is remarkable for its
elevation, simplicity, and moral earnestness. He lacks dramatic power and
skill in narration. Calmness and restraint, the lack of emotional
intensity, are also evident in his greatest work. His depths of space are
vast, but windless.
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