The Song of Hiawatha

by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

"The Song of Hiawatha" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow is an epic poem published in 1855. Written in trochaic tetrameter, it tells the fictional adventures of Ojibwe warrior Hiawatha and his tragic love for Minnehaha, a Dakota woman. Set near Lake Superior's Pictured Rocks, the poem follows Hiawatha from childhood through heroic deeds including slaying an evil magician, inventing written language, and discovering corn. The story culminates with the arrival of Christian missionaries and Hiawatha's mysterious departure westward into the sunset.