The Song of Hiawatha

The Song of Hiawatha is an epic poem written in 1855 by American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. It draws on a blend of Indigenous and Western influences to create a saga following a mythic Ojibwe hero. Though poorly received on its initial publication, the epic has become a beloved story studied worldwide. Today, many of the initial critiques—which challenged the elevation of a dying culture—have become inverted, instead challenging the romanticization of harmful cultural stereotypes and religious propaganda.

In spite of its debated flaws, however, The Song of Hiawatha holds an essential place in the American literary canon.

Poet Biography

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882) was an American poet best known for his historical poem “Paul Revere's Ride” and the epics The Song of Hiawatha and Evangeline, as well as his translation of Dante’s Divine Comedy. He was born in Portland, Maine (then Massachusetts), publishing his first work, the patriotic historical poem “The Battle of Lovell's Pond,” at age 13. Longfellow attended Bowdoin College, where he began a lifelong friendship with fellow writer Nathaniel Hawthorne, and published several dozen poems.

After graduation, Longfellow travelled throughout Europe and learned French, Spanish, Italian, German, and Portuguese.