Hanging from the beam,
Slowly swaying (such the law),
Gaunt the shadow on the green,
Shenandoah!
The cut is on the crown
(Lo, John Brown),
And the stabs shall heal no more.

Hidden in the cap
Is the anguish none can draw;
So your future veils its face,
Shenandoah!
But the streaming beard is shown
(Weird John Brown),
The meteor of the war.

Analysis, meaning and summary of Herman Melville's poem The Portent

1 Comment

  1. David Hamilton says:

    The Transendentalists around Emerson did not feel that Melville or Hawthorn were supporters of Abolition.

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