The Song of Three Friends
This poem comprises eight cantos.
The story begins in 1822 - and follows an expedition of Major Andrew Henry during a series of arduous journeys over the Trans-Missouri region: following the Grand, Missouri and Yellowstone Rivers.
The poem examines the exploits of three trappers - Will Carpenter, Mike Fink, and Frank Talbeau - who through shared experiences have developed a close friendship. But the bonds of friendship uniting the trio explode after Will succeeds in wooing the Indian girl who had stolen Mike's heart. Mike's jealously leads to murder: the remaining cantos complete the narrative, in which only one of the original three will survive to tell the tale.
Read more about this topic: Cycle Of The West
Famous quotes containing the words song and/or friends:
“Come dame or maid, be not afraid,
Poor Tom will injure nothing.”
—Unknown. Tom o’ Bedlam’s Song (l. 11–12)
“The lack of closeness among friends is a fault that cannot be reprimanded without becoming incurable.”
—Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900)