Canadian Poem

THE SOLDIER'S BROTHER--A BALLAD

Allan, Peter John (1825-1848)

A WOUNDED warrior knelt apart,
On the battle-field knelt he;
There was anguish in his iron heart,
And tears bedimm'd his ee.

And wept he for the blood that flow'd
In torrents from his side;
Or thought he of death's dreary road,
Or of a distant bride?

No selfish fears that warrior felt,
No blooming bride had he;
Beside a brother's corpse he knelt,
And tears bedimm'd his ee.

The dreams of boyhood's hours awoke,
That long had silent slept;
Old memories their fetters broke,
And o'er his spirit swept,
He bowed beneath grim sorrow's stroke--
He bowed his head and wept.

The tears of youth are like the dews
That fertilizing fall;
Let hope a single beam diffuse,
That sunbeam drinks them all.

The tears of manhood, when they flow,
Flow not like common rain;
Peace, reason, hope, they overthrow,
A deluge of the brain.

He gazed upon the pallid brow,
Once smiling pleasure's throne;
Those eyes how fixed and ghastly now,
Their joyous spirit flown!

Those ringlets, once a mother's pride,
Stained all with dust and gore;
The snow-white neck in purple dyed,
She ne'er shall clasp it more!

"Oh, may I ne'er survive," he said,
"My brother's fate to tell;
Why should I live when he is dead?
I'll fall as Edwin fell."



Reflection:
This poem shows survival because it is about two brother’s that are at war and one of them is killed, but the other survives and watches while the poet tells us how the soldier feels about his brother dying. This poem is very sad and mentioning their childhood together adds to that effect. The imagery is described in great detail such as how the poet describes the dying man’s tears and his brow.

“The tears of youth are like the dews
That fertilizing fall;
Let hope a single beam diffuse,
That sunbeam drinks them all.

The tears of manhood, when they flow,
Flow not like common rain;
Peace, reason, hope, they overthrow,
A deluge of the brain.”

This two stanzas are very effective. They talk about the difference between the tears of youth and the tears of manhood. I feel the second stanza is better written though. It means that when an adult cries it does not happen as often as it rains which means adults rarely cry. Also, it says when adults cry things such as peace, reason and hope are overpowered by the tears. These two stanzas are saying that children cry often, but it is easy for them to feel better and adults cry rarely, but when they do they have a majour break down. I feel this is a very well written poem because the poet describes it in such detail it makes me feel as if I was there watching this tragic event take place.