<P> "A Visit from St. Nicholas", more commonly known as "The Night Before Christmas" and "' Twas the Night Before Christmas" from its first line, is a poem first published anonymously in 1823 and later attributed to Clement Clarke Moore, who claimed authorship in 1837 . Some commentators now believe the poem was written by Henry Livingston Jr...</P> <P> The poem has been called "arguably the best - known verses ever written by an American" and is largely responsible for some of the conceptions of Santa Claus from the mid-nineteenth century to today . It has had a massive impact on the history of Christmas gift - giving . Before the poem gained wide popularity, American ideas had varied considerably about Saint Nicholas and other Christmastide visitors . "A Visit from St. Nicholas" eventually was set to music and has been recorded by many artists . </P> <P> On Christmas Eve night, while his wife and children sleep, a father awakens to noises outside his house . Looking out the window, he sees Santa Claus (Saint Nicholas) in an air - borne sleigh pulled by eight reindeer . After landing his sleigh on the roof, the saint enters the house through the chimney, carrying a sack of toys with him . The father watches Santa filling the children's Christmas stockings hanging by the fire, and laughs to himself . They share a conspiratorial moment before Santa bounds up the chimney again . As he flies away, Santa wishes everyone a "Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night ." </P> <P> The poem's meter is anapestic tetrameter (four feet of unstressed - unstressed - stressed). The anapest is the same foot used to construct limericks, and the common metrical modifications that can be observed in the limerick form also can be observed in Moore's poem . For example, while the first two lines each use full anapests, lines 3 and 4 each drop the first unstressed syllable . Likewise, lines 9 and 10 drop the first unstressed syllable; they also add an extra unstressed syllable to the end . </P>

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