Virtual Talk: “Cross of Snow: The Life of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow” with Nicholas Basbanes

This is the first major literary biography of America’s most beloved nineteenth century poet in more than 50 years.  It’s time to remember the life, the times, the works–the soul–of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Paul Revere’s Ride, The Song of Hiawatha and Evangeline shaped the literature of a new nation.  The bold artist’s huge body of work also included numerous foreign translations, among them Dante’s Divine Comedy. The poet maintained deep friendships with Charles Dickens, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Julia Ward Howe, and Oscar Wilde and had two happy marriages with very tragic endings. Although he was a very private man, he wrote Resignation after the death of his daughter, Fanny, in 1848. He also wrote a memorial poem to his second wife, Frances after her death. The Cross of Snow was not published until during his lifetime. Above all, Longfellow wanted to be read and understood by all. He achieved a celebrity unparalleled in his time.  Centuries later, his works continue to stand the test of time.

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