An Old-Timer by James Whitcomb Riley
The poem is a nostalgic and melancholic reflection on the passing of time and the decline of traditional values. It portrays an old man who has lived through significant historical events and has seen the world change around him. The speaker laments the loss of innocence and the simplicity of life in the past, while also acknowledging the inevitability of progress and change.
By James Whitcomb Riley · First published 1883 · Genre: Poetry, Pastoral, Reflective · 233 words
First lines
Here where the wayward stream / Is restful as a dream, / And where the banks o'erlook / A pool from out whose deeps / My pleased face upward peeps, / I cast my hook.
Silence and sunshine blent! - / A Sabbath-like content / Of wood and wave; -a free- / Hand landscape grandly wrought / Of Summer's brightest thought / And mastery. -
For here form, light and shade, / And color-all are laid / With skill so rarely fine, / The eye may even see / The ripple tremblingly / Lip at the line.
I mark the dragon-fly / Flit waveringly by / In ever-veering flight, / Till, in a hush profound, / I see him eddy round / The "cork," and-'light!
What this Textopian page supports
An Old-Timer is listed on Textopian as a poem by James Whitcomb Riley, dated 1883 CE.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Poem
- Author: James Whitcomb Riley
- Date: 1883 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Poetry, Pastoral, Reflective, Nostalgic
- Length: 233 words
- Structure: 1 section, 5 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Fairly Easy (7th Grade)
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- Work identity for An Old-Timer by James Whitcomb Riley
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Genres
- Poetry — The work is structured in verse form with rhyme and meter, characteristic of poetry.
- Pastoral — The poem depicts a serene natural setting, emphasizing the beauty and tranquility of the countryside.
- Reflective — The poem conveys introspection and contemplation, as the speaker reflects on nature and personal memories.
- Nostalgic — The poem evokes a sense of longing for the past, particularly through the speaker's reminiscence of childhood experiences.
Tags
Poem · Nostalgia · Rural Life · Old Age · Memory · Childhood · Coming of Age · Autobiographical · Regionalism · Indiana Literature · American Poetry · 19th Century Literature