author
William Cullen Bryant
1794–1878
A major voice in early American poetry, he is best remembered for the meditative classic Thanatopsis and for writing vividly about nature. He also spent decades shaping public opinion as the influential editor of the New-York Evening Post.
5 Audiobooks
Letters of a Traveller; Or, Notes of Things Seen in Europe and America
by William Cullen Bryant
A Discourse on the Life, Character and Writings of Gulian Crommelin Verplanck Delivered before the New-York Historical Society, May 17th, 1870
by William Cullen Bryant
Poetical Works of William Cullen Bryant Household Edition
by William Cullen Bryant
The Little People of the Snow
by William Cullen Bryant
Poems by William Cullen Bryant
by William Cullen Bryant
About the author
Born in Cummington, Massachusetts, in 1794, William Cullen Bryant became famous while still young, especially after Thanatopsis drew attention for its calm, serious meditation on death and the natural world. His poetry helped establish him as one of the leading American literary figures of the 19th century.
Bryant first trained as a lawyer, but journalism became the other great work of his life. After moving to New York, he joined the New-York Evening Post and eventually served as its long-time editor. In that role he became an important public voice, known not only for literary achievement but also for his influence on political and cultural debate.
Readers often come to Bryant for the quiet strength of his poems: their love of landscapes, their moral seriousness, and their clear, musical language. He died in 1878, but his work remains a cornerstone of early American literature.