THE WIND-HARP by James Russell Lowell: Summary, Meaning & Analysis
A grieving man intertwines strands of his deceased lover's hair into a wind harp, pleading with the breeze to play it, searching for a message or a bit of comfort.
The poem
I treasure in secret some long, fine hair Of tenderest brown, but so inwardly golden I half used to fancy the sunshine there, So shy, so shifting, so waywardly rare, Was only caught for the moment and holden While I could say _Dearest!_ and kiss it, and then In pity let go to the summer again. I twisted this magic in gossamer strings Over a wind-harp's Delphian hollow; Then called to the idle breeze that swings All day in the pine-tops, and clings, and sings 'Mid the musical leaves, and said, 'Oh, follow The will of those tears that deepen my words, And fly to my window to waken these chords.' So they trembled to life, and, doubtfully Feeling their way to my sense, sang, 'Say whether They sit all day by the greenwood tree, The lover and loved, as it wont to be, When we--' But grief conquered, and all together They swelled such weird murmur as haunts a shore Of some planet dispeopled,--'Nevermore!' Then from deep in the past, as seemed to me, The strings gathered sorrow and sang forsaken, 'One lover still waits 'neath the greenwood tree, But 'tis dark,' and they shuddered, 'where lieth she, Dark and cold! Forever must one be taken?' But I groaned, 'O harp of all ruth bereft, This Scripture is sadder,--"the other left"!' There murmured, as if one strove to speak, And tears came instead; then the sad tones wandered And faltered among the uncertain chords In a troubled doubt between sorrow and words; At last with themselves they questioned and pondered, 'Hereafter?--who knoweth?' and so they sighed Down the long steps that lead to silence and died.
A grieving man intertwines strands of his deceased lover's hair into a wind harp, pleading with the breeze to play it, searching for a message or a bit of comfort. The harp echoes snippets of their shared memories, but each effort to find solace crumbles into feelings of loss, culminating in a solitary, unanswerable question about what follows death. By the final stanza, the music gradually fades into silence, as grief offers no comforting answers.
Line-by-line
I treasure in secret some long, fine hair / Of tenderest brown, but so inwardly golden
I twisted this magic in gossamer strings / Over a wind-harp's Delphian hollow;
So they trembled to life, and, doubtfully / Feeling their way to my sense, sang, 'Say whether
Then from deep in the past, as seemed to me, / The strings gathered sorrow and sang forsaken,
There murmured, as if one strove to speak, / And tears came instead;
Tone & mood
The tone remains tender and mournful throughout, but it never veers into self-pity. In the early stanzas, Lowell maintains a quiet wonder—a sense of genuine beauty in the image of the hair and the harp—before grief tightens its hold and the language becomes darker and more fragmented. By the end, the tone reflects a wearied resignation: it’s not quite rage or despair, but rather the hollow stillness of a question that has been asked without receiving an answer. The Biblical reference in stanza four offers a brief moment of bitter defiance, which makes the final fade into silence feel even more defeated.
Symbols & metaphors
- The lock of hair — The hair serves as a tangible reminder of the deceased woman, hidden away like a personal shrine. Its description — brown on the outside, golden on the inside — implies that her inner light still flickers in the speaker's memory. Additionally, it forms the very strings of the harp, intertwining grief and love into the instrument that seeks to express itself.
- The wind-harp (Aeolian harp) — An Aeolian harp is activated solely by the wind, serving as a natural symbol for messages that come without human intervention. In this context, it represents the speaker's hope that some force — be it nature, the divine, or the spirits of the deceased — might communicate with him unexpectedly. The harp's eventual silence underscores the poem's key message about grief and the constraints of comfort.
- The greenwood tree — The greenwood tree is a classic symbol from English folk songs and pastoral poetry, representing a peaceful spot for lovers to meet. Its mention here highlights the contrast between the vibrant past, when two people shared moments in the sun, and the bleak, cold present where only one is left.
- The breeze / wind — The wind acts as both the actual player of the harp and a symbol for the unseen realm beyond the living. The speaker *calls* to it, requesting that it take his sorrow away and return with something. The fact that the wind can only generate pieces and ultimately silence implies that the divide between the living and the dead doesn't convey messages in either direction.
- 'Nevermore' — The single word brings to mind Poe's *The Raven*, which was published just fifteen years before this poem. In Poe's work, it serves as the sole response to every inquiry about the lost Lenore. Lowell employs it here to suggest that the harp, much like Poe's raven, cannot provide hope — only a reminder of irreversible loss.
- The steps leading to silence — In the final lines, the fading music is envisioned as moving down a long staircase into silence. This adds a spatial, almost architectural feel to the poem's conclusion—silence becomes more than just an absence; it’s a destination the music reaches. It reflects the speaker's own emotional journey from hope, through grief, to a state of wordless fatigue.
Historical context
James Russell Lowell wrote this poem while grappling with deep personal loss. His first wife, Maria White Lowell — a fellow poet and his intellectual partner — succumbed to tuberculosis in 1853. This loss left Lowell heartbroken, and many of his poems from this time focus intensely on themes of grief, memory, and the struggle to connect with those who have passed on. The Aeolian or wind-harp was a well-known symbol during the Romantic era, used by poets like Coleridge, Shelley, and Thoreau to explore the connections between nature, the human mind, and unseen forces. Lowell adds a poignant twist by stringing the harp with the hair of his deceased wife, making the instrument a literal part of her being. The poem also engages with Poe's *The Raven* (1845), echoing its *Nevermore* refrain, as well as the New Testament story of the two in the field (Matthew 24:40), which Lowell flips to suggest that being left behind is the more painful fate.
FAQ
A wind-harp, or Aeolian harp, is a stringed instrument set in a window or outside, allowing the breeze to create music without any human intervention. Romantic poets cherished it as a representation of nature communicating with the human spirit. Lowell chooses it because he seeks an instrument that plays *on its own* — if it generates music, it seems like a message from beyond himself, rather than merely a product of his imagination.
The poem reflects on Lowell's first wife, Maria White Lowell, who passed away from tuberculosis in 1853. A poet and abolitionist, she was widely regarded as the great love of his life. The lock of her brown hair, the deep sorrow, and the lingering questions—all of these elements highlight the impact of her loss.
He references a parable from Matthew 24:40, where Jesus talks about two people in a field—one is taken (to heaven) and one is left behind. Many readers think being 'taken' is the unfortunate outcome. Lowell turns that idea on its head: the person who dies escapes suffering, while the one who remains has to continue living with that loss. To him, survival is the true punishment.
Yes, it seems very likely. Poe's *The Raven* came out in 1845 and became hugely popular. In the poem, a raven responds with *Nevermore* to every question the sorrowful speaker poses about his lost Lenore. Lowell takes this word to suggest that his harp, much like Poe's raven, can only affirm loss — it can't provide hope or a chance for reunion.
Delphi was home to the most renowned oracle in ancient Greece, where the god Apollo reportedly communicated through a priestess. Referring to the harp's hollow as *Delphian* portrays it as a channel for divine or supernatural messages — the musician isn't merely playing music; he is seeking guidance from an oracle, yearning for a prophecy or words from the beyond.
Because Lowell speaks candidly about grief, the entire poem reflects the speaker's struggle to find solace or connection with the woman he has lost through various means—memory, nature, ritual, and scripture. Unfortunately, none of these efforts yield comfort. The harp's last question, *Hereafter? Who knoweth?*, remains unanswered, and the music eventually fades away. Silence isn't a flaw in the poem; it is, in fact, its essence.
Each stanza consists of seven lines and follows a loose anapestic rhythm, similar to the lively, flowing meter found in the works of Byron and Poe. The rhyme scheme is approximately ABABBCC, with Lowell occasionally bending it. The meter's melodic, flowing quality reflects the wind-harp itself, moving in waves instead of strict beats, making it fitting for a poem that explores themes of music and grief.
It stands out as one of the poem's most powerful images. When grief drowns out the harp's effort to play a hopeful tune, the resulting sound is likened to the eerie silence on a shore of a planet stripped of all life. It transforms personal loss into something grand and universal — not just the absence of one person, but the complete extinction of all existence, all essence, wiped away.