This poem explores the contrast between a new wife's idealized view of marriage and her husband's actual behavior, versus an older woman who has experienced the reality of marriage and its disillusionments. The speaker describes how the young bride sees her husband as perfect, but soon discovers his flaws, while the older woman knows that no man is perfect and that marriage involves compromise and sacrifice.
By John Greenleaf Whittier · First published 1853 · Genre: Poetry, Romanticism, Gothic