The Entry into Jerusalem

Discussion Questions: "The Entry into Jerusalem" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

1. Close Reading / AQA AO2 | AP Close Reading: Longfellow frames the Gospel story of Bartimeus through the voice of a young girl speaking to her mother on a rooftop in Jerusalem. How does this narrative framing device shape the reader's reception of the story, and what does it suggest about who gets to tell—or retell—sacred history?

1. Theme – Faith / IB Guiding Question: In "The Entry into Jerusalem," Bartimeus's call to Jesus initially faces opposition from the crowd before it is eventually answered. What does the poem convey about the relationship between persistent, socially disruptive faith and the potential for transformation?

1. Symbol – Blindness / AQA AO2: The poem uses Bartimeus's physical blindness as a symbol that extends beyond the literal. How does Longfellow develop this symbol throughout the poem, and what does the final stanza's direct challenge to the reader indicate about who Longfellow perceives as the "truly blind"?

1. Tone & Voice / AP Close Reading: The poem's tone transitions from reverent storytelling to a more urgent, sermonic direct address by the final stanza. How does this tonal shift influence the reader's connection to the poem's central message, and what might Longfellow have aimed to achieve by concluding with a challenge instead of a comfort?

1. Symbol – The Crowd / IB Guiding Question: The crowd in the poem attempts to silence Bartimeus, yet they are situated physically close to the miracle. What does the crowd symbolize in terms of the poem's broader themes of social class and inequality, and how does their behavior complicate straightforward interpretations of community or solidarity?

1. Language & Form / AQA AO2 | AP Close Reading: Longfellow incorporates original Greek phrases from the New Testament at key moments, giving a liturgical, ceremonial quality to the verse. Why might he have opted to preserve these phrases in Greek instead of translating them into English, and what effect does this layering of languages produce for various audiences?

1. Historical & Biographical Context / AQA AO3 | IB Context: "The Entry into Jerusalem" was part of Christus: A Mystery (1872), a project Longfellow worked on for nearly thirty years during a period of intense religious and scientific debate in America. How might the publication of Darwin's On the Origin of Species in 1859 have influenced Longfellow's choice to present faith not as doctrine but as an emotionally and intellectually felt experience through poetry?

1. Theme – Redemption & Mercy / AP Thematic Analysis: The poem presents mercy as something actively pursued rather than passively received—Bartimeus must call out, persist against opposition, and be recognized as a person before healing happens. What does this imply about Longfellow's understanding of mercy and redemption, and how does the poem position human agency within a narrative ultimately centered on divine intervention?

1. Symbol – The Gates of Jericho / IB Guiding Question: The gates of Jericho serve as a threshold symbol in the poem, representing the boundary between exclusion and inclusion. How does this symbol connect to the framing device of the Syro-Phoenician mother and daughter—historical outsiders—and what does this layering suggest about the poem's message of hope and inclusion?

1. Authorial Intent / AQA AO1 + AO3: Longfellow merges the ballad form—accessible, musical, and popular—with Greek scriptural language and the structure of a dramatic work. What does this fusion of the popular and the sacred reveal about his beliefs regarding poetry's role in society, and how effectively does "The Entry into Jerusalem" bridge the emotional and the intellectual?