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The Old Bridge At Florence, Florence and the Ponte Vecchio in the poetry of Henry Longfellow
“TADDEO GADDI built me. I am old;
Five centuries old. I plant my foot of stone
Upon the Arno, as St. Michael’s own”
[…]
“Florence adorns me with her jewelry;
And when I think that Michael Angelo
Hath leaned on me, I glory in myself”
In Henry Longfellow’s sonnet about the Ponte Vecchio in Florence, the bridge is described as an old, strong and sturdy being. He uses personification for the bridge saying “I plant my foot of stone Upon the Arno…” to give the reader a sense of how powerful this bridge is with its stone feet.
When I first came upon the Ponte Vecchio I too felt this sense of eternal power come over me as I glanced upon the bridge.
It seemed so intriguing and interesting that I didn’t see how a person could walk by and not look at it. Longfellow describes the bridge as having “glistening scales” and he goes on to talk about the wars the old bridge has been through.
He incorporates a bit of history into his description of the bridge as he discusses the Medici’s being driven from Florence and Michael Angelo once being on the bridge.
This gives the reader an even bigger sense of just how old and how much the bridge has been through, which shows how important it is in the entirety of Florence.
The last line of the sonnet “I glory in myself” when Longfellow once again personifies the bridge, gives the Ponte Vecchio a sort of boasting attitude.
As if it knows it goes over the river with its strong pride and the knowledge that it is better than all of the other bridges. The fact that this amazing piece of architecture is described in a sonnet with dream like language and beautiful rhymes fascinates me.
It just shows that all of the architecture in Florence is so beautiful that it can be described in a beautiful form of literature like poetry.
Written by: Erika Enggren, student at CEA study abroad in Florence
Lifestyle, Arts and Entertainment - a8.04.15.13.20
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