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To Ellen at the South

A poem by Ralph Waldo Emerson

Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882) was an American essayist, lecturer and poet who led the Transcendentalist movement of the mid-nineteenth century. This poem, addressed to Ellen Tucker, Emerson's first wife, was first published in the nineteenth century. It takes the form of a love poem, but its deeper subject is time and choice: the flowers speak for everything beautiful and fleeting, and their plea is a meditation on what we risk when we hesitate. This text reflects its era; a few period terms have been modernised. The poem is worth a young reader's time because it teaches that presence and attention are not luxuries — they are the only responses that honour what will not last.

Band

Blue · Independent readers, confidentTypical starting range: ages 12–14

Length

long · about 929 words in 4 sections · 2 pictures

Source

Poems, Ralph Waldo Emerson

First published

see the About page in the reader

Regions

Canada · United States

Included formats

• · Web reader and PDF
• · EPUB for e-readers
• · Home-print sheet
• · Folded booklet
• · Binder edition (8.5 × 11)
• · Worksheet
• · Quick Check (10 questions) with answer key
• · Read-aloud script
• · Teacher’s Edition (members)

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