Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, THE FISHER'S BOY, by HENRY DAVID THOREAU


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

THE FISHER'S BOY, by         Recitation         Poet Analysis     Poet's Biography
First Line: My life is like a stroll upon the beach
Last Line: And I converse with many a shipwrecked crew.
Variant Title(s): Upon The Beach
Subject(s): Seashore; Beach; Coast; Shore


MY life is like a stroll upon the beach,
As near the ocean's edge as I can go;
My tardy steps its waves sometimes o'er-reach,
Sometimes I stay to let them overflow.

My sole employment is, and scrupulous care,
To place my gains beyond the reach of tides, --
Each smoother pebble, and each shell more rare,
Which Ocean kindly to my hand confides.

I have but few companions on the shore:
They scorn the strand who sail upon the sea;
Yet oft I think the ocean they've sailed o'er
Is deeper known upon the strand to me.

The middle sea contains no crimson dulse,
Its deeper waves cast up no pearls to view;
Along the shore my hand is on its pulse,
And I converse with many a shipwrecked crew.





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