The Rainy Day, by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

The day is cold, and dark, and dreary;
It rains, and the wind is never weary;
The vine still clings to the mouldering wall,
But at every gust the dead leaves fall,
And the day is dark and dreary.

My life is cold, and dark, and dreary;
It rains, and the wind is never weary;
My thoughts still cling to the mouldering past,
But the hopes of youth fall thick in the blast,
And the days are dark and dreary.

Be still, sad heart, and cease repining;
Behind the clouds is the sun still shining;
Thy fate is the common fate of all,
Into each life some rain must fall,
Some days must be dark and dreary.

1.

What is the rhyme scheme of the first stanza?

2.

How do the speaker's thoughts compare to a vine?

3.

Define the word "mouldering."

4.

Based on the metaphors between stanzas one and two, what does the speaker of this poem consider "the hopes of youth" to be?

5.

The line "Into each life some rain must fall" is one of Longfellow's most well-known lines. What do you think it means?