Henry Wadsworth Longfellow



Longfellow is far more famous as a poet, and his most famous stories—Evangeline and Hiawatha—were written in verse. He did, however, write in prose as well. His romances have been largely forgotten, though the poet's reputation kept them running through edition after edition through most of the latter nineteenth century.

Hyperion, a romance. By the author of "Outre-Mer." New York: Published by Samuel Colman, 1839. —This first edition is exceedingly rare, since the publisher failed, and half the edition was seized by creditors. Longfellow revised the text somewhat in later editions. We have cobbled together a complete set from a copy of the first volume (in a very good scan) at archive.org and a copy of the second at Google Books.
Volume I (at archive.org).

Volume II (at Google Books).

Hyperion: A Romance. By Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Revised edition. Boston: James R. Osgood and Company, 1871.


Hyperion: A Romance. By Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Revised edition. Illustrated. Philadelphia: David McKay (no date, but probably about 1900). —At archive.org. Illustrated with photographs of the picturesque locations mentioned in the romance.

The Romance of Hyperion must not be judged by the prin­ciples of classical compo­sition. It belongs, pre-eminently, to the Romantic School. The scene is laid in the very centre of all that is romantic in the land of recol­lec­tions and ruins of the Middle Ages. It is steeped in the romantic spirit. The language is moulded into the gorgeous forms of Gothic art. The illus­tra­tions and com­pari­sons are drawn wholly from the sphere of romantic literature. In tender and profound feeling, and in brilliancy of imagery, the work will bear a com­parison with the first produc­tions of romantic fiction, which English litera­ture can boast. Some tastes will be offended by the luxuri­ance of the language, and the brocaded aspect which it occa­sionally presents. A mind educated in exclusive admiration of the ancient classics, or in the modern schools formed upon their prin­ciples, may naturally be dis­pleased with many things which occur in "Hyperion." We are our­selves by no means insensible to the force of stric­tures, which may be made upon it. But we remember, on the other hand, that nature is limited to no age or country; and art may select from the whole range of nature those objects which suit her purposes, whether they have been handled by the ancient masters or not, provided she do not transcend the limits of morality on the one side, nor sink to the region of common­place, on the other. "Hyperion" must be judged wholly with reference to this view. The term romance has probably misled a great many readers. We have been accus­tomed to expect, in a work bearing this title, a prodi­gious amount of diabolical mysteries, trap-doors without number, sub­ter­ranean dungeons, and the clanking of chains; fortunate, if we escaped with half a dozen ghosts, to say nothing of wizards and en­chanters. Mailed knights, and dragon-guarded ladies, are also quite necessary in­gredients in the genuine mixture called a romance. "Hyperion" is no romance of this descrip­tion. Its quiet, delicate, and beauti­ful pictures contrast with the ter­rific scenes of old romance, like a soft, autumnal scene, compared with the land­scape swept by the tropical hurricane.

——"A Critique of Hyperion, Extracted from the North American Review," in the Corsair, Vol. I, No. 46 (January 25, 1840).

Kavanagh, a tale. By Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Boston: Ticknor, Reed, and Fields, 1849.


Hyperion and Kavanagh by Henry Wadsworth Loongfellow. Boston and New York: Houghton, Mifflin and Company, 1898.