Question

Which two lines in the poem indicate its theme? A Shadow by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow I said unto myself, if I were dead, What would befall these children? What would be Their fate, who now are looking up to me For help and furtherance? Their lives, I said, Would be a volume wherein I have read But the first chapters, and no longer see To read the rest of their dear history, So full of beauty and so full of dread. Be comforted; the world is very old, And generations pass, as they have passed, A troop of shadows moving with the sun; Thousands of times has the old tale been told; The world belongs to those who come the last, They will find hope and strength as we have done.

Answer 1

The two lines in the poem that indicate its theme in

'A Shadow' by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow are:

I said unto myself, if I were dead,

What would befall these children? What would be

Because the main theme is the love that he feels for his children. So Longfellow is concerned about what will happen to his children if he eventually dyes. He tries to convince himself that they will be able to do their lives decent because he properly educates them.