# Urbs Coronata explained — Poetry

> Chapter companion for Poetry by Henry van Dyke Jr..

## What happens

A song for the City College of New York, personifying New York as a young queen who rejects pride and fortresses, choosing instead a diadem of wisdom. The poem celebrates the building of a citadel of truth, a house of light, and a shrine of noble youth, urging the college towers to remember the hopes of the toiling town and become the city's crown.

## Themes in this chapter

### Duty and Patriotism

The city's dedication to building a citadel of truth and a shrine of noble youth reflects a sense of duty to education and civic pride.

### The Pilgrimage of Life

The college towers are urged to look up and down, remembering the past and aspiring to become the city's crown, symbolizing a journey of growth and purpose.

## Character check-ins

### Unknown

The narrator personifies New York as a queen and addresses the City College towers.

## Key lines

> Weave me no palace-wreath of Pride, Nor forge of frowning fortress-walls A helmet for my head; But let me wear a diadem Of Wisdom’s towers instead.

Do not crown me with symbols of pride or military might; instead, let me be adorned with the towers of wisdom.

_The city rejects vanity and war in favor of knowledge and education._

> She bowed herself, she spent herself, She wrought her will forsooth, And set upon her island height A citadel of Truth, A house of Light, a home of Thought, A shrine of noble Youth.

The city humbly and tirelessly worked to build a fortress of truth, a place of enlightenment and thought, dedicated to noble youth.

_Describes the founding of City College as a selfless act of creation._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_10_se/chapters/urbs-coronata
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_10_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_10_se/chapters