होली (Holi), the color of festival is one of the most important festival of India. To cherish this festival, here, presenting a very fine poem "Friendship" by Henry David Thoreau.

1. “Friendship”
by Henry
David Thoreau
Kaushal Desai
kaushaldesai123@gmail.com
SlideShare: https://www.slideshare.net/kaushal111

2. About poet
Poem
Theme
Analysis of the poem
Style of writing
Conclusion
Contents Of The Poem

3. Henry David Thoreau
(1817-1862)
• Henry David Thoreau was an American essayist, poet,
and philosopher. A leading transcendentalist, he is best known for
his book Walden, a reflection upon simple living in natural
surroundings, and his essay "Civil Disobedience" (originally
published as "Resistance to Civil Government"), an argument for
disobedience to an unjust state.
•His some other works include:
Early Spring in Massachusetts (1881)
Summer (1884)
Winter (1888)
Autumn (1892)
Miscellanies (1894)
Familiar Letters of Henry David Thoreau (1894)
Poems of Nature (1895)

4. “I think awhile of Love, and while I
think,
Love is to me a world”
Henry David Thoreau
“Friendship”

5. Poem: “Friendship”
I think awhile of Love, and while I think,
Love is to me a world,
Sole meat and sweetest drink,
And close connecting link
Tween heaven and earth.
I only know it is, not how or why,
My greatest happiness;
However hard I try,
Not if I were to die,
Can I explain.
I fain would ask my friend how it can be,
But when the time arrives,
Then Love is more lovely
Than anything to me,
And so I'm dumb.
For if the truth were known, Love cannot speak,
But only thinks and does;
Though surely out 'twill leak
Without the help of Greek,
Or any tongue.
A man may love the truth and practise it,
Beauty he may admire,
And goodness not omit,
As much as may befit
To reverence.
But only when these three together meet,
As they always incline,
And make one soul the seat,
And favorite retreat,
Of loveliness;

6. When under kindred shape, like loves and
hates
And a kindred nature,
Proclaim us to be mates,
Exposed to equal fates
Eternally;
And each may other help, and service do,
Drawing Love's bands more tight,
Service he ne'er shall rue
While one and one make two,
And two are one;
In such case only doth man fully prove
Fully as man can do,
What power there is in Love
His inmost soul to move
Resistlessly.
Two sturdy oaks I mean, which side by side,
Withstand the winter's storm,
And spite of wind and tide,
Grow up the meadow's pride,
For both are strong
Above they barely touch, but undermined
Down to their deepest source,
Admiring you shall find
Their roots are intertwined
Insep'rably.
Poem: “Friendship”

7. Here, the major theme is friendship. The
relationship of friendship found in love for
another person, animals, things, etc like,
• Couple; husband and wife
•Parents and children
•Man and nature
•Man and animals
Theme

8. Analysis of the poem
•Friendship by Henry David Thoreau is a nice well rhyming poem. Henry has
conveyed his feelings, emotions and sentiments by the way of this poem. He has
beautifully described love through friendship. According to him love and
friendship are both on the same level and are synonymous to each other.
•The poet has analyzed friendship from its roots and found out they are equal
and there is no difference between the two. Love and friendship both are equally
important in a relationship.

9. Analysis of the poem
•Love is the greatest feeling in the world.
•Love is the base of every relationship. No feeling is superior to love in life. A
person with love in his heart, can win anyone and anything in his life.
I think awhile of Love, and while I think,
Love is to me a world,
Sole meat and sweetest drink,
And close connecting link
Tween heaven and earth.
•Love can be seen in many relationships such as two couples, between
parents and their children, bosses and employee.
•But love is incomplete without friendship. In any relationship there has to be
a certain percentage of friendship in order to make a successful relationship.
•Friendship is a gift you give to yourself. A true friend is a God’s blessing. A
person is nowhere without friends. Friends are the most important and
crucial part of our life.

10. Analysis of the poem
•In his attempt to determine the limit of friendship, he immersed
himself in the ocean of friendship.
•His deep exploration made him realize that the roots of friendship are
intertwined, inseparable, undetermined.
When under kindred shape, like loves and hates
And a kindred nature,
Proclaim us to be mates,
Exposed to equal fates
Eternally;
•Intertwined roots of friendship indicate, there is no defined base of
friendship, it can happen between anyone i.e. there are no set rule to
start your friendship with someone in order to have a successful
friendship.

11. Analysis of the poem
•True Friendship laid on the ground of love is described as
inseparable.
•Thus we see by the way of this poem, the poet tries to explain
how deep friendship can be. It tells us how a man can be no
where without his friend. Love connects every individual just like
friendship. Love is not weak or feeble; the supply of love is
unlimited. When you share your love you share your greatest
feeling.

12. • Language: The language is very lucid and simple giving understanding of
two elements of life that is love and friendship.
• The poem is designed in eleven stanzas and each stanza has 5 lines.
• Rhyme scheme: the poem has five-line stanzas rhymed abaac, Henry
David Thoreau offers a meditation on the nature, beauty, and power
of friendship.
• The present poem elaborate a single word ‘friendship’ with depth
understanding.
Style of writing

13.  Literature is mainly based on three things, love, life and
death. In between we see more of the literature conveys
the love of friendship.
To conclude the poem it is right to say,
“life without friendship is like wine without taste”
♀ Conclusion

14. Thanks! &
Happy Holi 
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