(1807–1892)
Whittier was born at Haverhill, Mass., the son of a poor Quaker farmer. His boyhood was spent at work on his father's farm and he had few opportunities for schooling. But he showed his talent for verse at an early age, and in this manner attracted the interest and friendship of William Lloyd Garrison. Determined to obtain an education, he learned the trade of making slippers, and with this as a means of support was able to attend two years at Haverhill Academy.
For some years after this he led a shifting life, sometimes editing one of a number of periodicals with which he was successively connected, and at other times working the ancestral farm. In 1836 the farm was sold and the Whittiers removed to Amesbury, destined to remain his home until his death in 1892, fifty-six years after.
Whittier was a Quaker, and, like most of that sect, a zealous champion of abolition. To that cause he sacrificed ambition and love; and, like most of the early abolitionists, he suffered for his faith. While editor of the "Pennsylvania Freeman," at Philadelphia, his printing plant was sacked and burned by the mob.
Whittier never married. His sister Elizabeth, who became his lifelong companion, and whose verse is preserved with his own, shared likewise in the war he made on slavery.
His poems may be divided into two classes: those descriptive of rural life and scenery, among which the best are "Snow Bound," his masterpiece, "The Tent on the Beach," "Maud Muller," and "Among the Hills"; and his polemics against slavery, including "Voices of Freedom," "Barbara Frietchie," and "The Slaves of Martinique." He also collaborated with Lucy Larcom in the compilation of "Child Life," "Child Life in Prose," and "Songs of Three Centuries."
Poetry was no fine art with him, and his verse seldom rises above the ballad; but his style is characterized by great simplicity, sincerity, directness, and fervor. The elements of passion and sturdier humor are lacking, but he was the master-painter of New England scenery, as evidenced in his "Snow Bound," the best verse of that kind since "The Deserted Village," and "The Cotter's Saturday Night." Rustic winter scenes have never been more beautifully described.
THE MAN
1. From what rank in life did Whittier come?
2. What can you say of his childhood?