The Tide Rises, The Tide Falls by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Summary: The Tide Rises, The Tide Falls by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow is a poem about the passage of time and life.

Section One:

• Time passes by, the tide rises and falls; the sky gets dark, the traveler goes to town

Section Two:

• Darkness comes, the sea washes away footprints in the sand;

Section Three:

• The morning comes, and the traveler will not go back to the shore

Other Notes:

• The daily life of the sea continues even though the traveler will not be returning
• The tide is probably showing that life continues as normal even though the traveler is not there; the tide is not going to stop just because someone isn't there
• The traveler could possibly represent the life of a person in general; although we may leave footprints, over time they are washed away

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