Bryant directed this poem at
American painter Thomas Cole, a member of the
Hudson River school of painting. At this time in
American history, writers and artists were attempting to create a uniquely American
culture and break away from the influence of
England and Europe. Bryant is exhoriting Cole not to forget his American
heritage.
William Cullen Bryant (
1794-
1878)
Thine eyes shall see the light of distant skies:
Yet, Cole! thy heart shall bear to
Europe's strand
A living image of thy native land,
Such as on thy own glorious canvas lies.
Lone lakes -
savannahs where the
bison roves -
Rocks rich with summer garlands - solemn streams -
Skies, where the desert
eagle wheels and screams -
Spring bloom and autumn blaze of boundless groves
Fair scenes shall greet thee where thou goest - fair,
But different - every where the trace of men,
Paths, homes, graves, ruins, from the lowest glen
To where life shrinks from the fierce
Alpine air.
Gaze on them, till the tears shall dim thy sight,
But keep that earlier, wilder image bright.