Comparison of "Thanatopsis" and "The Cross of Snow"

Comparison of "Thanatopsis" and "The Cross of Snow"


Romantic writers find beauty and authenticity in the supernatural realm.

William Cullen Bryant and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow provide excellent samples of works of

Romantic poetry with their poems, "Thanatopsis" and "The Cross of Snow." In "Thanatopsis,"

Bryant attempts to describe the ways in which life after death is superior to life on Earth. In

Longfellow's poem, he mourns the lost of his wife. Although both poems treat the subject of

death as the main idea, they convey differences and similarities in their use of poetic elements.

Both poems convey correspondence in their use of imagery, Romantic ideas,

and theme. "Thanatopsis" and "The Cross of Snow," first of all, reveal likeness in their use of

imagery. The two poems both recognize features of nature when using imagery, everything from

the ground up to the sky. The two poems also exhibit similitude in the Romantic ideas whic...