what is the meaning of the " as if they already stood aghast at the bloody work they would look upon form the poem Paul Revere
Where does this come from? Context is needed.
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It comes from the poem Paul Revere by Longfellow. Then line before is And the meeting house windows, blank and bare gaze at him with a spectral glare.
Longfellow uses personification here as he sees the windows blankly staring out. He imagines that they have already seen the bloody battles of the Revolutionary War.
To understand the meaning of the line "as if they already stood aghast at the bloody work they would look upon," you need to consider the context of the poem "Paul Revere" by Longfellow. In the preceding line, Longfellow describes the meeting house windows as "blank and bare" and suggests that they are staring at Paul Revere with a spectral glare.
From this context, we can infer that Longfellow is employing personification to attribute human emotions and actions to inanimate objects. When he says that the windows are "as if they already stood aghast at the bloody work they would look upon," he means that the windows seem to be expressing a sense of shock and horror as if they have already witnessed the violent and bloody events of the Revolutionary War.
This personification helps to build a vivid and dramatic image in the reader's mind, emphasizing the tense and momentous nature of the events being described. It also highlights the significance of Paul Revere's mission and the imminent danger that awaits.
In summary, the line suggests that the meeting house windows, personified as being capable of feeling shock, are anticipating the violent and bloody events that will occur and may already possess knowledge or foreboding of the events to come.