# The Change explained — Poetry

> Chapter companion for Poetry by Frances Ellen Watkins Harper.

## What happens

The speaker celebrates the transformative power of freedom, describing how the natural world and daily life are now filled with beauty and joy. No longer burdened by the horrors of bondage, he finds contentment in labor for his family, delight in his child's laughter, and a profound sense of peace that erases past grief and wrong.

## Themes in this chapter

### Freedom and Liberation

The entire poem is a celebration of freedom, contrasting the horrors of bondage with the beauty and joy of a liberated life.

### Hope and Redemption

The speaker finds redemption and hope in his new life, with love for family and the beauty of the world replacing past sorrows.

## Character check-ins

### Unknown Narrator

The speaker who experiences and celebrates the change from bondage to freedom.

## Key lines

> The blue sky arching overhead, The green turf ’neath my daily tread, All glorified by freedom’s light, Grow fair and lovely to my sight.

The natural world, once dull or painful, now appears beautiful because it is seen through the lens of freedom.

_Freedom transforms the speaker's perception of the world around him._

> For darling child and loving wife I toil with newly waken’d life; The light that lingers round her smile The shadows from my soul beguile.

Working for his beloved family gives the speaker a renewed sense of purpose, and his wife's smile dispels the darkness in his heart.

_Family love and labor are central to the speaker's new, joyful existence._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_7_se/chapters/the-change
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_7_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/poetry_7_se/chapters