Christian Love by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

"Whilom" is an old English term that means "once" or "in the past." Longfellow uses it intentionally to evoke a sense of age, almost like a biblical tone, as if he’s referencing timeless wisdom.

"Tire" is an old-fashioned spelling of "fire." You can still see the link in words like bonfire (derived from Old French bon feu, meaning good fire). Longfellow opted for this spelling to give the poem an antiquated, proverbial feel.

The title clearly refers to religious love, particularly the Christian idea of agape, which is the selfless love for God and others. However, the imagery of warmth fading into cold can also serve as a powerful metaphor for any love that has diminished in a relationship or within a community.

Smoke from a dying fire stings your eyes and throat; it’s the painful, useless remnant of something that was once good. By saying love now "bites" us, Longfellow conveys a disappointment that's sharp and physical, not just emotional.

It consists of a single rhyming couplet crafted in long, flowing lines (approximately anapestic heptameter). The two lines reflect one another: the first outlines what love was, while the second illustrates what it is now. This before-and-after format drives the entire essence of the poem.

Without the title, this could easily read as a poem about any love that has faded. However, the title makes it clear that Longfellow is specifically grieving the decline of true Christian charity—the warm, active love for God and others—which he believes has been supplanted by something empty and bothersome.

No, it’s one of his shorter, less famous works. Longfellow is much better known for his longer narrative poems like The Song of Hiawatha and Evangeline. This couplet feels more like a moral saying he quickly wrote down, reminiscent of the Book of Proverbs or the couplets by Alexander Pope.