A Legend of the Northland
By- Phoebe Cary
INTRODUCTION OF THE POEM
"A Legend of the Northland" is a ballad. It narrates the
legend of an old lady who angered Saint Peter because
of her miserliness. In Northland, where days are too
short and nights too long, a story is told to the children
and they like it. St. Peter once preached on the earth
walking from place to place. One day, he was very
hungry and wanted some food. He went to the door of a
little woman who was baking cakes. The saint asked her
to give him a cake out of her many cakes. The woman
made a very little cake but she thought, it was too large
to give away. She made another cake, but still found it
too large to give away. In the end, she made a wafer-
thin cake, but still could not give it This angered the
Saint, who called her too selfish to be a human being.
He turned her into a woodpecker, who bores and bores
tree-trunks for food. This story has a lesson for
humanity-Don't be miser. Be generous and kind to
those who need
your help.
THEME
The theme of the poem revolves around the theme that those who don’t have
kindness and compassion for others do not deserve to be loved. Also, one must
not get greedy in the lust of possessing more materialistic pleasures and comfort
in life. We must treat everyone with empathy and should understand others'
plight too. We all are children of God, therefore, we should love every other
creature on the planet Earth. Those who are selfless and help others are always
rewarded by the almighty, whereas those who are greedy and don't care about
others have to face the consequences.
MESSAGE
The poem conveys a very beautiful message for the readers. We all are equal in
the eyes of the Almighty god. We should treat everyone with respect and
empathy. We should show love to our fellow beings. We should help the
sufferers. Those who understand others’ plight and show compassion towards
them are loved by God and blessed with more wealth and comforts in life. In
comparison, those who don’t treat people equally and discriminate against them
based on their financial status and wealth are never blessed by God. We all are
humans and therefore, we should make efforts to love and respect everyone. We
must never get greedy and try to help the needy in each possible way.
SUMMARY
Far, far away, in the Northland, days are short and
nights are long. People, there. use sledges which are
drawn by reindeer. Children look like bear's cubs in
their furs. A story is told to those children, which holds a
lesson for the listeners. Once, when Saint Peter walked
on the earth
preaching, he came to the door of a little woman who
was baking cakes on the hearth. As the saint was very
hungry and very weak with fasting, he asked the
woman for a cake from her store
of cakes. The woman being selfish and miser, found her
very little cake too large to give away .She baked
another cake smaller than the first, but thought it was
as large as the first one. In the end, she baked wafer-
thin cake, which too she could not give to the saint. She
put it away. The
saint grew angry at this and turned the woman into a
woodpecker, a bird that bores and bores dry.
