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THE CONTRACT was considered almost as binding as a marriage. Remember by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Summary, meaning, line-by-line analysis & FAQ.

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This excerpt from Longfellow's prose-poem captures a community tradition where a young man is provided with a home, land, and supplies before he receives his chosen partner along with her dowry of livestock.

Poet
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Themes
family, home, love
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The PoemFull text

THE CONTRACT was considered almost as binding as a marriage. Remember

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

this. 260-2. As soon as a young man arrived at the proper age, the community built him a house, broke the land about it, and supplied him with all the necessaries of life for twelve months. Then he received the partner whom he had chosen, and who brought him her portion in flocks. ABBE REYNAL.

Public domain

Sourced from Project Gutenberg

§01Quick summary

What this poem is about

This excerpt from Longfellow's prose-poem captures a community tradition where a young man is provided with a home, land, and supplies before he receives his chosen partner along with her dowry of livestock. It resembles an ethnographic note more than a lyric poem, referencing the French historian Abbé Raynal's observations of a society where marriage-like contracts enjoy the support of the entire community. The passage presents love and partnership as publicly endorsed and materially rooted, rather than merely a private romantic sentiment.

§02Themes

Recurring themes

§03Line by line

Stanza by stanza, with notes

  1. THE CONTRACT was considered almost as binding as a marriage.

    Editor's note

    The opening line establishes the legal and social significance of the arrangement. By likening the contract to marriage instead of suggesting they are the same, Longfellow (drawing on Raynal) indicates that formal marriage represents the highest level of commitment, while this community contract nearly matches that standard. It positions what follows as a serious and structured social institution rather than a mere casual agreement.

  2. As soon as a young man arrived at the proper age, the community built him a house...

    Editor's note

    Here, the community functions like a collective parent or sponsor. The term 'proper age' suggests a rite of passage acknowledged by all, not just the person involved. The actions — constructing a house, cultivating land, providing essentials — are hands-on and tangible, illustrating that this society demonstrated care through effort and resources instead of mere ceremonies.

  3. Then he received the partner whom he had chosen, and who brought him her portion in flocks.

    Editor's note

    The word 'received' feels transactional and contrasts with 'chosen,' which suggests a shared desire. The woman's contribution — her 'portion in flocks' — represents her economic investment in the union, functioning as a dowry in livestock. The passage concludes on this practical note, anchoring the romantic agreement in the tangible realms of property and survival.

§04Tone & mood

How this poem feels

The tone feels measured and documentary—similar to a caption beneath a painting. While there's no overt emotion, a subtle admiration lies beneath, suggesting that Longfellow presents this custom as proof that a society can thrive on care and commitment. The restraint is intentional: by allowing the facts to speak for themselves, the passage encourages the reader to appreciate the dignity of the arrangement without being explicitly guided to do so.

§05Symbols & metaphors

Symbols & metaphors

The house
The house built by the community is more than just a shelter; it represents belonging, readiness, and social support. A man isn’t seen as ready for partnership until the community physically creates the space for it.
Broken land
Breaking the land around the house opens up new possibilities — turning raw earth into something productive. It ties the couple's future to the fertility and hard work of the land.
Flocks (the woman's portion)
The livestock the woman brings symbolize her family's stake in the union and her personal economic identity. They are active, breathing assets — not just idle wealth, but something that thrives and needs care, similar to the relationship itself.

§06Historical context

Historical context

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807–1882) was one of the most popular American poets of the nineteenth century, famous for his long narrative poems like *Evangeline* and *The Song of Hiawatha*. This passage serves as a prose epigraph or note, referencing Guillaume-Thomas Raynal (known in English as Abbé Raynal), the French philosopher and historian whose *Histoire des deux Indes* (1770) explored the customs of various societies around the globe. Longfellow had a keen interest in how different cultures approached love, family, and community, often turning to historical and ethnographic sources to shape his poetic reflections. The mention of Raynal situates this passage within the tradition of Enlightenment-era comparative anthropology, where non-European or pre-modern customs were used as lenses to examine Western society—sometimes with criticism, sometimes with admiration.

§07FAQ

Questions readers ask

It sits right on the border. Longfellow includes it as an epigraph or explanatory note, and it reads like prose, but its careful rhythm and progression from social contract to intimate union lend it a poetic structure. Consider it a prose poem or a lyric fragment—the distinction between the two was much more fluid in the nineteenth century.

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