We Have Been Friends Together

Norton’s imagery is dominated by descriptions of the natural world, particularly weather and temperature. The pleasing elements of the relationship are represented by images of spring, growth, warmth, and the sun while the negative elements are represented by decay, coldness, and shade. Immediately the speaker notes the pair of friends have existed in both “sunshine and in shade” (Line 2). The state of “sunshine” (Line 2) or happiness is further expressed in Stanza Two as a fountain “gushing” (Line 11) with “hope” (Line 11). This flow is “warm and joyous” (Line 12), suggesting a fertile emotional time between the friends. However, in Stanza Three, the growth is tempered by time and tragedy. As the speaker explains, optimism “slumber’d” (Line 19) in its “grass-grown graves” (Line 19) causing “bitter tears” (Line 18). Adding to this darkness is the friends’ argument over the “light word” (Line 8, Line 16). Their exchange has aligned the friend further with shadow. The speaker hopes the “cloud” (Line 6), with its “sullen” (Line 14) expression that “glooms” the friend’s face, will eventually “clear” (Line 22) so they can go back to the “sunshine” (line 2) they once felt regarding their friendship. Since Norton is vague about what exactly has been said between the friends, we can’t know the outcome, but the common imagery regarding landscape helps to show the conflict. In 1830, images of weather and landscape were abundant in poetry. Aware of their own environment, the reader would draw on these familiar notations to understand the emotional landscape Norton conveys.