Poetry · Chapter
Ars Agricolaris explained
An ode celebrating the Farmer's Dinner at the University Club in New York on January 23, 1913, honoring the hard work, triumphs, and honest toil of farmers.
What happens
An ode celebrating the Farmer's Dinner at the University Club in New York on January 23, 1913, honoring the hard work, triumphs, and honest toil of farmers. The poem humorously recounts battles with pests and nature's unpredictability, extolling the virtues of homegrown produce over imported luxuries, and encouraging farmers to find joy in dreams and a tranquil mind.
Themes in this chapter
Duty and Patriotism
The poem honors the honest labor of farmers as a patriotic duty, comparing them to Concord farmers and George Washington.
Nature and Divine Beauty
Nature is portrayed as both generous and capricious, with the farmer's life yielding beauty and truth.
Characters to notice
- Unknown
The narrator addresses the farmers directly, celebrating their work and offering wisdom.
- the Master
Implied as the guiding figure behind the ode's moral lessons.
Key passages
“All hail, ye famous Farmers! Ye vegetable-charmers, Who know the art of making barren earth Smile with prolific mirth”
Greetings to the renowned farmers who skillfully transform barren soil into abundant, joyful harvests.
Opening praise for farmers' ability to cultivate life from infertile land.
“And like the Concord farmers long ago, Ye meet above the 'Bridge' below, And draw the cork heard round the world!”
Like the historic Concord farmers, you gather and celebrate with a toast that echoes globally.
Reference to the Concord farmers and the 'shot heard round the world,' blending agricultural and revolutionary pride.
“Thus shall ye learn from labors in the field What honesty a farmer's life may yield, And like G. Washington in early youth, Though cherries fail, produce a crop of truth.”
Through farming, you learn honesty, and even when crops fail, you can still grow truth, like George Washington's cherry tree story.
Moral lesson linking agricultural work to integrity and the virtue of truthfulness.
“The seedsman's catalogue is all we need To stir our dull imaginations To new creations, And lead us, by the hand Of Hope, into a fairy-land.”
A seed catalog alone can spark our imagination and lead us hopefully into a dreamlike world of possibilities.
Celebration of the imaginative escape provided by seed catalogs during winter.
“May roses bloom for you, and may you find Your richest harvest in a tranquil mind.”
May you enjoy beauty and discover that the greatest reward is inner peace.
Closing blessing emphasizing mental tranquility as the ultimate harvest.