"London Snow" is an 1890 poem by Robert Bridges (1844-1930). In the poem, Bridges writes of a London whose grime and drudgery are briefly transformed by heavy snowfall. Drawing on the tradition of the Romantic poets, he pits the sublime power of nature against the grinding toil of the Industrial Revolution. While the snow's unifying and perfecting power is fleeting, it offers London's weary citizens a glimpse of a better world.
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The Full Text of “London Snow”
1When men were all asleep the snow came flying,
2In large white flakes falling on the city brown,
3Stealthily and perpetually settling and loosely lying,
4 Hushing the latest traffic of the drowsy town;
5Deadening, muffling, stifling its murmurs failing;
6Lazily and incessantly floating down and down:
7 Silently sifting and veiling road, roof and railing;
8Hiding difference, making unevenness even,
9Into angles and crevices softly drifting and sailing.
10 All night it fell, and when full inches seven
11It lay in the depth of its uncompacted lightness,
12The clouds blew off from a high and frosty heaven;
13 And all woke earlier for the unaccustomed brightness
14Of the winter dawning, the strange unheavenly glare:
15The eye marvelled—marvelled at the dazzling whiteness;
16 The ear hearkened to the stillness of the solemn air;
17No sound of wheel rumbling nor of foot falling,
18And the busy morning cries came thin and spare.
19 Then boys I heard, as they went to school, calling,
20They gathered up the crystal manna to freeze
21Their tongues with tasting, their hands with snowballing;
22 Or rioted in a drift, plunging up to the knees;
23Or peering up from under the white-mossed wonder,
24‘O look at the trees!’ they cried, ‘O look at the trees!’
25 With lessened load a few carts creak and blunder,
26Following along the white deserted way,
27A country company long dispersed asunder:
28 When now already the sun, in pale display
29Standing by Paul’s high dome, spread forth below
30His sparkling beams, and awoke the stir of the day.
31 For now doors open, and war is waged with the snow;
32And trains of sombre men, past tale of number,
33Tread long brown paths, as toward their toil they go:
34 But even for them awhile no cares encumber
35Their minds diverted; the daily word is unspoken,
36The daily thoughts of labour and sorrow slumber
37At the sight of the beauty that greets them, for the charm they have broken.
The Full Text of “London Snow”
1When men were all asleep the snow came flying,
2In large white flakes falling on the city brown,
3Stealthily and perpetually settling and loosely lying,
4 Hushing the latest traffic of the drowsy town;
5Deadening, muffling, stifling its murmurs failing;
6Lazily and incessantly floating down and down:
7 Silently sifting and veiling road, roof and railing;
8Hiding difference, making unevenness even,
9Into angles and crevices softly drifting and sailing.
10 All night it fell, and when full inches seven
11It lay in the depth of its uncompacted lightness,
12The clouds blew off from a high and frosty heaven;
13 And all woke earlier for the unaccustomed brightness
14Of the winter dawning, the strange unheavenly glare:
15The eye marvelled—marvelled at the dazzling whiteness;
16 The ear hearkened to the stillness of the solemn air;
17No sound of wheel rumbling nor of foot falling,
18And the busy morning cries came thin and spare.
19 Then boys I heard, as they went to school, calling,
20They gathered up the crystal manna to freeze
21Their tongues with tasting, their hands with snowballing;
22 Or rioted in a drift, plunging up to the knees;
23Or peering up from under the white-mossed wonder,
24‘O look at the trees!’ they cried, ‘O look at the trees!’
25 With lessened load a few carts creak and blunder,
26Following along the white deserted way,
27A country company long dispersed asunder:
28 When now already the sun, in pale display
29Standing by Paul’s high dome, spread forth below
30His sparkling beams, and awoke the stir of the day.
31 For now doors open, and war is waged with the snow;
32And trains of sombre men, past tale of number,
33Tread long brown paths, as toward their toil they go:
34 But even for them awhile no cares encumber
35Their minds diverted; the daily word is unspoken,
36The daily thoughts of labour and sorrow slumber
37At the sight of the beauty that greets them, for the charm they have broken.
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“London Snow” Summary
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“London Snow” Themes
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The Power and Fragility of Nature
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Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis of “London Snow”
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Lines 1-4
When men were all asleep the snow came flying,
In large white flakes falling on the city brown,
Stealthily and perpetually settling and loosely lying,
Hushing the latest traffic of the drowsy town; -
Lines 5-9
Deadening, muffling, stifling its murmurs failing;
Lazily and incessantly floating down and down:
Silently sifting and veiling road, roof and railing;
Hiding difference, making unevenness even,
Into angles and crevices softly drifting and sailing. -
Lines 10-18
All night it fell, and when full inches seven
It lay in the depth of its uncompacted lightness,
The clouds blew off from a high and frosty heaven;
And all woke earlier for the unaccustomed brightness
Of the winter dawning, the strange unheavenly glare:
The eye marvelled—marvelled at the dazzling whiteness;
The ear hearkened to the stillness of the solemn air;
No sound of wheel rumbling nor of foot falling,
And the busy morning cries came thin and spare. -
Lines 19-24
Then boys I heard, as they went to school, calling,
They gathered up the crystal manna to freeze
Their tongues with tasting, their hands with snowballing;
Or rioted in a drift, plunging up to the knees;
Or peering up from under the white-mossed wonder,
‘O look at the trees!’ they cried, ‘O look at the trees!’ -
Lines 25-27
With lessened load a few carts creak and blunder,
Following along the white deserted way,
A country company long dispersed asunder: -
Lines 28-30
When now already the sun, in pale display
Standing by Paul’s high dome, spread forth below
His sparkling beams, and awoke the stir of the day. -
Lines 31-33
For now doors open, and war is waged with the snow;
And trains of sombre men, past tale of number,
Tread long brown paths, as toward their toil they go: -
Lines 34-37
But even for them awhile no cares encumber
Their minds diverted; the daily word is unspoken,
The daily thoughts of labour and sorrow slumber
At the sight of the beauty that greets them, for the charm they have broken.
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“London Snow” Symbols
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Snow
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Workers
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“London Snow” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language
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Alliteration
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Sibilance
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Consonance
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Assonance
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Personification
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Enjambment
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Asyndeton
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Caesura
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Imagery
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Repetition
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“London Snow” Vocabulary
Select any word below to get its definition in the context of the poem. The words are listed in the order in which they appear in the poem.
- Perpetually
- Stifling
- Incessantly
- Veiling
- Crevices
- Uncompacted
- Hearkened
- Solemn
- Manna
- White-mossed
- Dispersed
- Asunder
- Paul's high dome
- Sombre
- Past tale of number
- Toil
- Encumber
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Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme of “London Snow”
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Form
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Meter
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Rhyme Scheme
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“London Snow” Speaker
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“London Snow” Setting
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Literary and Historical Context of “London Snow”
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More “London Snow” Resources
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External Resources
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More About Robert Bridges — A short biography and links to more of Bridges's poems.
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St. Paul's Cathedral — Some background on St. Paul's and its history as a London symbol.
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The Poem Out Loud — One reader's interpretation of the poem.
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The Poem Out Loud - Again! — A very different reading. Compare them and consider the effect the different voices have!
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Bridges as Poet Laureate — Some background on Bridges's public role as England's Poet Laureate.
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