Discussion. 1. To whom is this poem addressed? 2. What words tell you the time of year that the fringed gentian blooms? 3. What words does the poet use to tell the color of the gentian? 4. When does it open? 5. What words does Bryant use to mean early morning? 6. When do violets come and in what kind of soil do they grow? 7. What words in the poem tell you this? 8. What does the poet tell you about the violets when he says they “lean,” and about the columbine when he says it “nods”? 9. What signs of approaching winter does the poet mention? 10. Why does the poet repeat “blue” in the third line of stanza 4? 11. Of what is this color a symbol? 12. To what in his life does Bryant compare the end of the year? 13. In this comparison what does the little flower represent?
Phrases
- [heaven’s own blue, 53, 2]
- [quiet light succeeds, 53, 3]
- [shortening days portend, 53, 11]
- [cerulean wall, 53, 16]
VIOLET! SWEET VIOLET!
JAMES RUSSELL LOWELL
Violet! sweet violet!
Thine eyes are full of tears;
Are they wet
Even yet